• Shortfall caused by shipment and unloading delays
• Litro releases 100,000 cylinders daily to replenish supplies
• CAA to be asked to probe reports of cylinders disappearing from market

The shortage of about 250,000-300,000 domestic liquified petroleum gas (LPG) cylinders caused by the three and a half-day delay in the arrival and unloading of a gas shipment is expected to be resolved within seven to eight days, Deputy Trade Minister R M Jayawardena said, adding that the Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) would be asked to investigate reports of cylinders disappearing from the market soon after being released.

Speaking to The Daily Morning yesterday (27), he said that an LPG shipment had arrived around two days later than expected, followed by a further delay of about one and a half days in unloading the gas and transporting it for distribution. "We usually release around 80,000 cylinders of 12.5 kg to the market daily. In that context, these delays created an estimated shortfall of between 250,000 and 300,000 12.5 kg cylinders in the market." To make up for this shortage, he said the Litro Gas Lanka Limited had been releasing 100,000 cylinders of 12.5 kg each to the market daily, continuously since the morning of 23 October. "The shortage should be eliminated within around seven or eight days. However, I have received reports that cylinders supplied to the market are selling out almost immediately. There is no way that they should be selling out immediately like that,” he said.

Jayawardena further said that cylinders used by businesses could be exhausted within two or three days, but that those supplied for household use generally lasted around two and a half to three months. “Household cylinders cannot be running out that quickly. If they are disappearing from the market immediately after being released, that is a problem. We are planning to inform the CAA to carry out raids across the country and check whether cylinders are being hidden. If necessary, we will ask them to coordinate with District and Divisional Secretaries."

Consumers in several areas have been facing difficulties in obtaining domestic gas cylinders in the past few days, with queues reported at some distribution points as households struggle to secure supplies.