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| Sunday, 19 January 2003 |
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| News Business Features Editorial
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LPG price increase : 'Take it or leave it' - Shell By ANTON NONIS Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) sellers are wavering whether to cut-down their gas prices, giving an impression that they could do so if they really wanted to or continue to sell their gas at the recently ammended prohibitive rates. The Fair Trading Commission has urged the government to take measures that will compel sellers to reduce their gas prices which has reached `sky high' levels leaving the consumer only with one option, "take it or leave it." When Shell sells a 12.5 kilogram gas cylinder for Rs.598, Laugfs sells it at Rs.580. Shell and Laugfs increased their prices at random over the past few weeks. The latest increase which came about two weeks ago pushed the prices by Rs.70 for Shell and Rs.115 for Laugfs. The aim of the government had been to reduce the prices by at least Rs.50. Shell's Corporate Communications manager, Stevphen Bartholomeuz said that they are not willing to reduce the gas prices at all. He said that selling a 12.5kg cylinder at Rs.598, the company had already made a sizeable reduction of Rs.68 in the price. Otherwise its price had been Rs.666 which arrived by the formula reached by them with the government. Laugfs chairman W.K.H Wegapitiya said that there has to be some basis in fixing prices for gas. He said that this is a free market and that there is no price control. "We could fix our own prices to run the business in a profitable way" he said. Both, Shell and Laugfs that have monopolised gas sales in the country, gave the impression they could moderately reduce gas prices and still made a substantial profit in the business. Meanwhile, the third competitior, the Mundo gas, will be made available in the market soon, according to Mundo management. The delay had been unavoidable and was due to the construction of the filling plant now nearing completion. While the Mundo management criticises the present gas prices, they assure their stocks would be sold at competitive prices to the consumer. A source for Mundo gas said that they will also curve out with small cylinders (2.5kg) in the market that could be easy on the purse. to be sold alongside with the bigger ones. A large number of small cylinders have already been imported. |
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