Price of LPG goes up by 5%
From Thursday, March 3,2022, the price of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) was adjusted by 5%.
This comes after the Price Stabilization and Recovery Levy (PSRL) on gasoline goods was reinstated.
The restored PSRL for petrol is ¢0.16 pesewas per litre, ¢0.14 pesewas per litre for diesel, and ¢0.14 pesewas per kilogram for LPG.
Experts have cautioned that the reinstatement of the PSRL, as well as the resulting increase in LPG prices, will further reduce the commodity’s use rate and exacerbate the situation of regular consumers.
The price of LPG is now ¢9.76 per kilogram, which converts to around ¢140 and ¢50 for a 14.5 kg and 5 kg cylinder, respectively.
Gabriel Kumi, Vice President of the LPG Marketers Association, attributed the situation to the cedi’s poor performance.
“You anticipate the price to continue to go up whenever the cost grows exponentially up and you have constant taxes and levies,” he explains.
The price increased from ¢7.89 to ¢8.12 in December 2021 during the first pricing window.
It increased to ¢8.22 in the second window of January 2022.
The price increased to ¢8.60 in the first window of February 2022, and then to ¢9.29 in the second window.
At the moment, the price is ¢9.76.
According to the LPG Marketers Association, the quick rise in prices is impacting their company because LPG demand is falling.
“Business is not doing well since, according to statistics, LPG consumption is declining dramatically.”
So, if no action is taken and the price continues to rise at its current rate, there will be a slew of bad effects.
Some of our members have begun laying off employees today, and we are not growing.
“The ramifications are severe,” Gabriel Kumi continued.
The government has set a goal of raising commodities consumption from 25% to 50% by 2030 in order to make the product more accessible to the general public.
Many others have contended, however, that with the current rate of commodity price inflation, this goal may be unachievable.
However, the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) has stated that it is in talks with the Finance and Energy Ministries to find a realistic alternative to the ongoing fuel price hikes.
According to the statement, the meetings would mostly focus on the elimination of some tariffs on petroleum goods.
