Gas crisis will end before Ramadan: assures BERC chairman
Dhaka, January 15, 2026: There will be no crisis of LP gas in the month of Ramadan, assured Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Jalal Ahmed today. He said this crisis is temporary, but for long standing solution a consolidated action plan is required. He told this in a round table discussion on Regulatory challenges in the LPG market, organized by LOAB and Energy & Power magazine.
Speaker at the roundtable suggested regulatory reform in this sector. They also suggested that the regulatory structure should be changed for better performance. They said rules and regulation should be targeted to the interest of the people and also the companies working in this sector. If the price spiral of gas could not be controlled then all efforts will go in vain, they said.
Editor Energy and Power magazine, Mollah Amzad Hossain conducted roundtable discussion and said, people are not getting gas for their day to day usage. Regulation should be made for better operation not for obstructions. He also suggested a single point regulatory system for the LPG sector.
Energy expert Dr. M Tamim said there are problems in the regulatory structure and system in the liquid petroleum gas (LPG) sector. He also suggested reforms in the regulatory system and bring all formalities under one regulatory authority. He said this system should come under single regulatory framework.
M Tamim said, crisis in the liquid petroleum gas sector was there and in recent time crisis has deepened. He said in usage of LP Gas is increasing day by day in Bangladesh. There are nearly two million users and it will reach to 3.5 million within short time.
Multiple authority system is a big problem in Bangladesh,” he said. Licensing process is also very much complicated and expensive in Bangladesh, he told the roundtable and suggested to bring down the cost. Otherwise, he said all these coast put pressure on the pricing system which ultimately put pressure on consumers. He said environmental emission of LPG is very little so its use should be increased.
He said renewal of licensing time should also be extended and it should be five to ten years to reduce the hazards of the operating companies. Safety based regulatory system should be introduced instead of regulation based system, he suggested.
Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB) President AHM Shofiquzzaman thought LPG should be declared as essential product. Price fixing process should also be transparent, he said. CAB president said that the government organized should not involve with the business of LP gas. Business should be operated by the business farms. He also thinks that single point regulation system will ultimately help the consumers to get the product in fair price and without hassle.
BERC chairman Jalal Ahmed said that the government will work on regulatory reforms and try to ease the system for the convenience of operators which will be finally help-full for the consumers. He said import of LPG was also declining in last few months for international and local perspective. He hoped that supply system will be adequate within short time.
He said, most of the companies import LP gap more than their limit or ceiling. It is not true that import was limited, he said and hoped that the crisis will be no more in future. He said government will also try to increase the licensing time and on line services to the operators. He said the problems of imports will also be removed and government will also take steps in controlling price in the local markets.
Jalal Ahmed said the they are trying to increase the efficiency of BERC and also trying to increase the authoritative power of the organization for a better service to the people. “We are trying to be pro-active rather than reactive,” he said.
“We will able to overcome the present crisis with the help of all. It is a learning for us and there will be no problem in future,” he hopped.
LOAB (LPG Operators Association of Bangladesh) President Aminul Haque said, LP gas sector is passing a critical time. “It is a longstanding problem. We are facing problem in international markets and also in local ones.”
He cautioned that investment will not be increased if regulation bottlenecks are not removed. He said problems are lying with licensing process of LPG industries, high renewal fees and cargo discharging places. If these problems are not removed crisis will not go, he thought.
Deputy Director of Environment Directorate, Shamsuzzaman Sarkar said LPG bottling plants have been turned into yellow category from red. He said it is decided that LPD industry will be declared as green industries. He also assured to give clearance of his directorate in seven working days.
Joint Secretary of Energy Division, Fazlul Haq said, they are working to formulate a comprehensive policy framework for the LPG sector. He informed that they have requested Bangladesh Bank to introduce green banking support LPG indutries.
Taking part in the discussion BNP leader Zahir Uddin Swapan said every government should have specific plan for the expansion of energy sector and plans should be taken thinking about the interest of the people. He also suggested to ease authoritative control on LPG for the betterment of the people.
Another politician, former general secretary of CPB (Communist Party of Bangladesh), Ruhin Hossain Prince said sometimes crisis is being created artificially for gaining profits. He also suggested to take LPG sector under government control and not to export gas to ensure people’s right on it.
Journalists questioned about the abnormal price hike of LP gas in recent time. The operator and other stake holders said that crisis has been created not for getting adequate gas from the international market. There are also facing some problems for the lack of landing space and price management. They said LP gas price should be fixed on the price they are getting it from the international market.
Shahjahan Shaju of Universal Gas said six operators are dominating the market, rest operators have not impact. Sakib Ahmed Siddiqui of Unitex LP Gas said. they are not getting adequate products in the market. “We are buying the products in high price, how can we sell it in low price,” he questioned.
Abu Sayed Raza of Meghna Fresh Gas, “we are facing international and local problems. Price structure system is should be rational.” Belayet Hossain of Jamuna Space-tech said, the operators are facing political and economic problems. He also said that they are also confronting problems of import limits.
JMI chairman, Abdur Razzak, five operators, out of 27 have the capability to import. Others companies are suffering, he said adding that it situation goes like that than the whole market will be in trouble.
Former director of Petrobangla Ali Iqbal Md Nurulllah, Chief Inspector of Explosive Directorate, Md Abul Hassan also spoke on the occasion.
