LAHORE, Jan 4: The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) has directed the liquefied petroleum gas marketing companies to ensure sale of the product at the consumer price determined by it.

In a notice issued to 64 LPG production and marketing companies, Ogra Joint Executive Director Sarmad Aslam said the authority had observed that some marketing companies were selling LPG above Rs750 per 11.8kg domestic cylinder which was unreasonable keeping in view the existing producer price of Rs39,809 per metric ton.

The authority had, therefore, determined the reasonable consumer price at a maximum of Rs746 per 11.8kg cylinder for all the urban and rural areas in the country, except Azad Kashmir, Northern Areas and Fata where the maximum price would be Rs776 per cylinder due to higher transport cost.

The LPG Distributors Association welcomed the directions issued by Ogra to the marketing companies.

Association chairman Irfan Khokhar and secretary Mozammil Abbasi said in a statement that the distributors would sell the gas at the fixed price in case the marketing companies abided by the Ogra directive.

The distributors would set up a hunger strike camp outside the Islamabad Press Club in case the companies refused to sell the gas at the fixed price.