The prices of both domestic and non-domestic refills have come down, bringing much-needed relief to consumers.
In Chennai, the retail selling price of an LPG refill for the month of March is now ₹699.50. The subsidy is ₹229.50. One refill was priced at ₹746 in February.
Oil industry officials said that with the price of LPG coming down in the international market, oil companies were only passing on the benefits to customers. “It is usual for LPG prices to be on an upward trend from September to February and then go down from March to August. The hike in prices is due to higher demand for LPG during the cold season. In summer, the demand goes down and so do prices,” explained an official .
For a public burdened by high petrol and diesel prices, the decrease comes as a relief, said G. Ramakrishnan, Besant Nagar resident. “I travel a lot and, of course, use LPG at home. For the past few months, petrol prices have hovered above ₹70 a litre. On Saturday, it was ₹74.66 and it has been increasing by a few paise almost every day. We can only hope fuel prices too would come down,” he said.
The decrease in LPG prices has brought some respite to hoteliers and other commercial users. For March, a non-domestic refill would cost ₹1,307 (in February, it was ₹1387.50). “This downward trend seems fine, especially at a time when transportation costs are going up. But if there is a further decrease, we would be able to pass on the benefits to the customers,” said a hotelier.
