Proposal to separate household, commercial gas; industrialists given a week

Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) has proposed separating cooking gas for household and commercial use and selling the two at different prices. The proposal was presented at a meeting between the Corporation and the Nepal LP Gas Industry Association on Friday.

Under the proposal, until separate cylinders for commercial use come onto the market, industries would have to take about 30 percent of their monthly quota from the Corporation at the commercial rate. That gas would have to be sold only for commercial use, or a separate brand would have to be designated for it, the proposal states. The Corporation has given industrialists one week to decide on this.

A study taskforce under the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies has recommended introducing two categories and four weights of cylinders — household and commercial. If this policy is implemented, state subsidy would be limited to household cylinders only, and large commercial establishments would have to buy gas at cost price.

According to the Corporation's latest price list, the retail price of one gas cylinder at all depots nationwide currently stands at Rs 2,060. The Corporation has also accelerated the process of merging around 58 gas industry brands operating across the country.

However, industrialists say the merger will not be possible unless they get an exemption from capital gains tax under Section 57 of the Income Tax Act, 2058. According to the Corporation, the process of merging Nepal Gas and HP Gas into a single Nepal Gas brand has reached its final stage.