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Photo: TRN LPG cylinders ready for distribution at Bheri Gas Industry.

Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) has significantly increased imports of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) from India to address the shortage of cooking gas reported in various districts of western Nepal.

After the shortage emerged in the market, the corporation imported 1,344 metric tonnes more LPG in Nepali month Saun than in the previous month.

According to Ajit Kumar Pokhrel, chief of the NOC Nepalgunj office, 3,636 metric tonnes of LPG were imported in Asar, while the volume was increased to 4,980 metric tonnes in Saun. The quantity imported in Saun is equivalent to around 93,980 more cylinders than in Asar.

Pokhrel said imports were increased in Saun after complaints of a gas shortage began emerging in the market from the final week of Asar. According to him, there has been no problem with the supply of LPG from India, which has continued regularly.

“The shortage in the market occurred for some time because consumers, fearing a gas shortage, tried to refill and stock all the cylinders they had at home. There is no problem with imports. Gas is arriving according to demand,” he said.

The corporation said the shortage had eased recently in Nepalgunj and surrounding areas following the increase in imports from India. It said it had also been focusing on imports and distribution to ensure smooth LPG supplies in Banke, Bardiya and Dang in western Nepal, as well as districts in Karnali Province.

According to the corporation, Bheri Gas Industry in Nepalgunj imported 2,839 metric tonnes of LPG in Saun, Manakamana Gas Industry imported 911 metric tonnes, Nepal Karnali Gas Industry imported 329 metric tonnes, and Rapti Gas Industry in Dang imported 899 metric tonnes.

The corporation said 277 tankers, carrying a total of 351,790 LPG cylinders, were imported into the Nepalgunj area alone in Saun. NOC Nepalgunj chief Pokhrel claimed that the volume of the latest imports would be sufficient to meet market demand.

Bheri Gas Industry in Nepalgunj has a storage capacity of up to 540 metric tonnes of LPG and can produce up to 9,000 cylinders a day.

Manakamana and Rapti Gas Industries each have a storage capacity of 200 metric tonnes and produce around 2,500 cylinders daily, according to the corporation. Nepal Karnali Gas Industry has a daily production capacity of 1,200 cylinders.

Meanwhile, the District Administration Office, Banke, said it had continued monitoring the availability and distribution of LPG in the district.

Banke Chief District Officer Dil Kumar Tamang said regular market monitoring was being carried out under the leadership of Assistant Chief District Officer Mahesh Gurung and that there was currently no shortage of LPG in the district.

Gas traders, however, said they were facing some difficulties as they were not receiving LPG from industries according to the demand.

Gita Regmi, a gas trader from Koreanpur, Nepalgunj, said she used to receive 3,500 cylinders a month but had been receiving only 2,400 cylinders since last month.

By Siraj Khan