Industrialists are turning increasingly to liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to keep factories running as natural gas supplies falter and fuel prices climb.

Of the roughly 150,000 tonnes of LPG imported each month, about 17 percent now goes to industries, up from around 10 percent a year ago. Operators say industrial use has even reached 35,000 to 40,000 tonnes in some months, exceeding the roughly 25,500 tonnes implied by the 17 percent share. Experts expect it to rise further given uncertainty over fuel supplies and the cost of alternatives.

The Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) holds no comprehensive data on industrial LPG customers or on use by sector. Based on operators’ figures, it says industry accounted for 17 percent of the country’s total LPG supply in September. Leaders of the LPG Operators Association of Bangladesh (LOAB) put the number of industrial customers at about 400, a figure that is still rising.

The shift comes amid a cylinder shortage that became acute in the domestic market during the final week of September. Natural gas supplies had already been severely disrupted for at least two weeks by LNG import and supply issues, along with a mechanical fault at a floating terminal. But traders told operators, the Energy Division and the regulator that imports had not fallen short. Some allege an artificial crisis may have been created at some point in the distribution and retail chain, despite adequate imports.

NBR import data also show no major shortfall in recent months. Bangladesh imported 123,975 tonnes of LPG in July, 157,760 tonnes in August and 156,129 tonnes in September.

Operators say that while imports have held up, growing industrial consumption has put extra strain on supply management. They have had to maintain deliveries to large customers to keep production running, and in some cases have adjusted supplies to residential users.

“We have more than 30 industrial customers, whose monthly demand comes to about 1,500 tonnes,” an official at one of the country’s leading LPG companies told Bonik Barta on condition of anonymity.

“Their consumption rose so sharply in August and September that we couldn’t supply as much as they needed. We had to cut supplies to a few industrial customers somewhat and increase them for residential users.”

Natural gas shortages and higher fuel prices have led entrepreneurs to use more LPG, the official said. LPG has become an attractive alternative for many as a comparatively cheaper fuel.

Rising fuel prices are a further driver. As international prices rose, the government raised the price of diesel, kerosene, petrol and octane by BDT 20 a litre on September 21. After three rounds of adjustments throughout 2026, diesel has risen by BDT 35 a litre, kerosene by BDT 43, petrol by BDT 44 and octane by BDT 45, according to figures compiled by stakeholders. Furnace oil used to generate power in factories has also risen by nearly 15 percent.

With gas supply and pressure low, many industrial plants are running production on alternative fuels. Some entrepreneurs had covered electricity shortfalls with diesel generators, but higher diesel prices have now made that option costlier, while furnace oil-fired machinery is also becoming more expensive to run.

Maqbul-E-Elahi Chowdhury, an energy expert and former member of BERC, told Bonik Barta: “If the gas crisis becomes more acute, LPG use will rise. Entrepreneurs have to consider cost savings to keep factories running. Until now diesel and other fuels were given priority, but their costs are rising too. LPG use is therefore likely to increase substantially in industries.”

Omera Petroleum Ltd, one of the country’s leading LPG operators, says its industrial sales have doubled from previous levels. The company holds about 19 percent of the national LPG market, according to the Energy Division. Its chief executive Tanzeem Chowdhury said entrepreneurs were using more LPG in light of fuel availability and the need to hold down costs, and that the company’s industrial sales had “doubled over the past few months”.

Meghna Fresh LPG Ltd also reports higher industrial use. Its chief marketing officer Abu Sayed Raza said industrial consumption was rising steadily as natural gas shortages and pressure on the supply side drew entrepreneurs towards LPG. Operators, he added, were continuing to cooperate on supply to support the industrial sector further.

Earlier figures from the Energy and Mineral Resources Division put residential use at about 80 percent of the LPG imported and supplied in the country, industry at 12 percent and autogas at 5 percent, with the remaining 3 percent going to other sectors.

More recent estimates from operators, however, put industry’s share at 17 percent. Government agencies’ estimates of sectoral use differ somewhat.

BERC Chairman Jalal Ahmed said the rise in industrial consumption was visible in the operators’ figures. “Industrial use of LPG has increased compared with before. It used to be within 10 to 12 percent. In September it averaged 17 percent, and at some companies the rate has reached 20 percent.”

LOAB leaders do not accept that the growth in industrial use is directly linked to the recent cylinder shortages. They argue that demand from industry had not risen overnight and rather had been climbing steadily for years. Any inquiry into the recent crisis should therefore look at distribution at the distributor level and at how the market is managed, alongside imports and supply.

Mohammed Amirul Haque, president of the association, said: “It isn’t the case that demand for LPG in the industrial sector has risen suddenly. Entrepreneurs have been increasing their use of LPG for a long time to keep production going through the energy crisis, and the trend is growing steadily. But the recent cylinder shortage was not caused by higher industrial use.”

About 17 percent of the country’s total LPG supply goes to industry, he added, which now has roughly 400 customers, a number that is itself rising steadily.