LAHORE: Only one shipment of 2,500 tons of LPG arrived on Monday to meet the anticipated high-demand during the month of Ramazan.

With local production at 1,200 tons the demand is expected to surge to 1,500 tons.

The shipment was imported by Jamshoro Joint Venture Limited and available for sale to LPG companies for Rs85,000 per ton.

Recently the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority has fixed the maximum consumer price for imported LPG at Rs1,136 per cylinder, inclusive of Rs70 as margin for distributors.

“Given that the landed cost of imported product for most LPG companies is Rs94,500 per ton (Rs1,112 per domestic cylinder), selling at Ogra’s notified price of Rs1,066 per cylinder will be impossible” said a Director of a LPG marketing company based in Islamabad.

LPG prices have also risen in the international market which has led many companies to believe that LPG producers in Pakistan will increase their prices in August.

Companies that lift imported product are likely to carry it forward into next month to avoid any confrontation with Ogra.