Wholesale and Retail Prices to be Released Soon!
As you heard just now, Doctor Canton says that the price setting exercise will help to determine the wholesale price for local distributors. That price, up to the time we spoke with Canton this morning, was not released as yet but he pointed out that globally LPG prices have been increasing. Doctor Canton says that wholesale price will be the same across the board for the distributors – so how will that factor into retail for consumers?
On the Phone: Dr. Gilbert Canton, Managing Director, N.G.C.L.
“A lot of people like to talk about cheaper prices and lower price. I think that is all relative and I think that is all very relative. We are price shakers and not price makers, you know. So basically what the acquisition price is as we get it in the source country which is the US Gulf Coast. That is where we have to start within our price and that is regulated. There are some allegations out there that we are not regulated but we are regulated very strongly because although we don’t fall under the of our Act, our Act applies and it governs and regulates our operations. In that act and the schedule for that act, there is a formula on how we arrive at the wholesale pricing and all the inputs and pieces that go into that. So it is very transparent in pricing. Again, we are price shakers and not price makers, so depending on what the acquisition price, just like in other fuels like gasoline and diesel, when a shipment comes in they have to sit down and do the calculation of what’s the acquisition price and plug that into the formula and then come up with a final wholesale price. I can tell you that prices in butane and LPG have been going up in terms of the source supply. In March of last year it went down to like about twenty-four cents and right now it is about ten and a half cents raised above that price in March, so that that will have to factor into that also. And the reason for that, a lot of people saying why is LPG prices going up when petroleum price going down up to zero and some places negative or how you take it . It is because LPG is not very directly associated with petroleum anymore in terms of pricing and that is because all the LPG in the US Gulf Coast comes from the shared production and the share production in this case has been cut back so there is not as much and the demand is there and that drives the prices up. All the existing players in the industry, whether it is BWEL, ZETA, Tomza, BNE, whoever it may be and want to buy product from NGC will all get the same price so it is a leveled playing field going forward on the distribution of retail price in the industry. Remember the NGC came in to put a stop to the whole thing of using a hold over the complete supply chain to get yourself in a better position in the market. And that is what has been happening with the other three companies – they have the complete control over the supply chain. Now with NGC in we are breaking that chain and say okay anybody getting the wholesale price that NGC has and then they will be able to get the same price and then compete out there based on their service, distribution network and whatever else they want to do in supply for their market share.”
Late this evening, the Belize Bureau of Standards released the new pricing structure for LPG. According to the release: butane will now retail at a wholesale price of two dollars and twenty-six cents per gallon countrywide; in urban areas, it retails at three dollars and eighty-six cents per gallon and in rural areas, it will be sold to consumers at three dollars and ninety-six cents.
