In Tajikistan, the price of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) has surged by 30% over the past two weeks, rising from $0.53 to $0.68 per liter. This sharp increase has been attributed to recent developments in the supply chain, particularly involving Kazakhstan, which is the primary source of Tajikistan's LPG imports.
According to the publication azh.kz, Tajikistan imported 200,000 tons of LPG in the first half of 2024, with 95% of this volume sourced from Kazakhstan, specifically from Tengizchevroil. The Deputy Head of the Antimonopoly Service, Safarali Kurbonzoda, highlighted that scheduled maintenance work at the manufacturing plants in Kazakhstan has contributed to the price increase. Since nearly all of Tajikistan’s LPG imports come from Kazakhstan, any disruptions or market fluctuations in the supply chain directly impact the prices in Tajikistan.
Kurbonzoda noted, “There is information that scheduled maintenance work has begun at the liquefied gas manufacturing plants from where we import it. Almost 95% of our liquefied gas comes from Kazakhstan. Accordingly, any product that is imported to our market is subject to the influence of the market situation, which ultimately affects the price of the product.”
In Tajikistan, the LPG market is regulated with a price discrepancy between domestic and export prices. Currently, only two companies are authorized to export LPG: Tengizchevroil and Zhaikmunai. Despite this, there is an eight-fold difference between the prices of LPG for export and those regulated for domestic consumption.
The disparity in LPG pricing is primarily due to the low prices offered to Kazakhstani consumers, subsidized by the country's oil industry. The subsidized prices in Kazakhstan, intended to support domestic motorists, are maintained at the expense of the oil workers, leading to a substantial price gap between domestic and export markets.
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