CNG likely to cost more in a day or two

The government is likely to raise the price of compressed natural gas in a day or two, officials said.

The decision would be taken by the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission on a proposal sent by Petrobangla to raise the CNG price.

Petrobangla, the state run oil, gas and mineral resources corporation, sent the  proposal to the BERRC on October 14, 2010 seeking its permission to raise CNG price of feed gas to Tk 18 a cubic metre from Tk 9.97 for the CNG stations and to Tk 24.90 from Tk 16.75 a cubic metre for the consumers.

BERC chairman Yusuf Hossain told New Age that the commission would meet once more to take a decision on the proposal.

He said that he would announce the decision at a news conference.

The price of compressed natural gas would be raised for the consumers as well as the CNG stations in a day or two, an official of the commission said.

Yusuf Hossain said the commission would meet once more to take the decision on the proposal of Petrobangla.

'We would call a news conference to announce the decision,' he said.

The chairman and two members of the BERC met the prime minister Tuesday afternoon as well as the state minister of energy to obtain their approval for the commission to take the decision, BERC officials told New Age.

After holding a public hearing on the Petrobangla proposal in the conference room of the commission, the technical committee of the BERC instead of giving a single recommendation said that three options open to the commission were, not to increase the CNG price, to increase the price only for private vehicles or to increase the price on the line asked by Petrobangla.

In the public hearing, Petrobangla put up the argument that raising the CNG price as proposed by it would provide additional revenue of Tk nine billion.

But the associations of CNG stations owners and CNG driven public transport owners opposed the proposal.

Source: New Age