Cooking Gas Shortage Mounts as NOC Absorbs Fresh Fuel Price Hikes
A deepening LPG shortage driven by road disruptions and Middle East tensions has pushed consumers toward induction stoves, while the Nepal Oil Corporation freezes retail fuel prices despite surging import costs.
Nepal is reeling from an acute shortage of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) sparked by geopolitical conflicts abroad and monsoon disaster damage at home, prompting the state oil monopoly to absorb steep price increases to shield festive consumers.
According to Nagarik News, the Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) decided on Wednesday to freeze domestic retail fuel rates despite Indian Oil Corporation sending sharply higher wholesale rates on Ashwin 14. Due to ongoing conflicts in the Middle East, IOC raised petrol by Rs 20.44 per litre, diesel by Rs 20.21, and LPG by Rs 81.32 per cylinder. By holding consumer tariffs steady ahead of major festivals and amidst flood recovery, the NOC estimates it will endure a fortnightly loss of roughly Rs 3.20 billion.
The price freeze arrives as kitchens across the country struggle to secure cooking gas. Himal Khabarpatrika reported that supply disruptions—triggered broadly by international conflicts and compounded locally after glacial floods and landslides in late August severed the key highway at Krishnabhir in Dhading—have left consumers unable to find even half-filled cylinders. Student groups have staged street protests using firewood, and commercial eateries have shut doors.
To curb distribution distortions, the government has once again turned to dual-tier LPG distribution. The Kathmandu Post reported that the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies has formed a study committee led by Joint Secretary Jitendra Basnet to evaluate distinct cylinder sizes and pricing for commercial and residential consumers. NOC spokesperson Manoj Thakur noted that the corporation loses Rs 411 per cylinder because commercial entities, which account for 30 percent of total usage, purchase cylinders at the subsidised household price. Similar past schemes involving two-colour cylinders in 2013 and consumer subsidy ration cards in 2011 collapsed before full rollout.
Meanwhile, households are increasingly migrating to electric alternatives. Himal Khabarpatrika noted customs records showing almost 990,000 electric stoves imported in fiscal year 2082/83 as LPG import volumes fell by over 34,000 tonnes. Research from the Institute of Engineering's Centre for Energy Studies in Pulchowk showed that electric induction cooking costs around Rs 990 monthly for a typical five-member household, compared to Rs 1,478 on LPG.
However, the sudden rush toward electric cooking brings its own complications. Annapurna Post reported that total imports of major electrical kitchen appliances climbed by over 48 percent to Rs 2.64 billion in fiscal year 2025/26. Consumer advocates, including Jyoti Baniya, warned that the unregulated influx of substandard, non-branded induction hotplates has left buyers stranded with premature breakdowns, minimal warranty protections, and mounting electronic waste.
The feasibility of electric cooking has also sparked high-level policy friction. Himal Khabarpatrika highlighted that Prime Minister Balendra Shah and Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle warned in Parliament that widespread simultaneous adoption of induction stoves would overload and explode existing transformers and substations. Conversely, former Nepal Electricity Authority managing director Kulman Ghising dismissed those warnings, maintaining the grid's local distribution assets can safely accommodate domestic induction cooking.