With Kathmandu Valley’s cooking gas supply still falling short, gas-bottling plants across the Terai are refilling cylinders around the clock to keep LP gas flowing to the capital. Fourteen plants in Makwanpur, Bara, Parsa, Chitwan, Mahottari, Dhanusha, and Nawalparasi are currently filling cylinders bound for Kathmandu.
After the August 26 flood on the Trishuli River triggered a landslide at Krishnabhir on the Prithvi Highway, blocking the road, gas tanker trucks importing from India have been stuck outside the Valley for lack of an alternate route. With tankers unable to reach Kathmandu directly, the government has arranged for gas cylinders to be brought in via small and large trucks along alternate roads instead.
Even so, the shortage in the Valley persists. Plants filling for 26 Kathmandu-marketed brands are having their cylinders refilled at Terai gas plants and trucked in via the Tribhuvan Highway, with individual plants reportedly sending between 1,000 and 8,000 cylinders a day to Kathmandu for a single brand.
Sahara Gas Industry in Hetauda, which markets in Kathmandu, said it is filling 4,000 Everest Gas and 4,000 Sugam cylinders daily, running three shifts around the clock. Manager Khadga Thapa said the plant has ramped up production despite difficult conditions during the disaster.
“We’re filling at a rate of 8,000 to 12,000 cylinders a day, 2,500 of those go to the local market under our own Sahara brand, and we’re sending more than 8,000 to Kathmandu,” he said.
He added that gas is being routed to Kathmandu via the Palung road, with 5 to 7 small trucks plus vehicles belonging to Kathmandu dealers and parties carrying about 8,500 cylinders to the capital daily. He said the workload has meant 18-20 hour shifts, and that vehicles often have to wait their turn to load.
Manoj Gas filling 1,800 cylinders a day
Manoj Gas Udhyog Pvt. Ltd. in Parwanipur, Parsa, is filling cylinders for two Kathmandu-based brands, STC (Salt Trading Corporation) and Lokpriya, alongside its own. Staff member Sanjay Kumar Mishra said the plant fills its own gas from 9 am to 5 pm, then switches to filling and dispatching 1,600-1,800 cylinders of the two Kathmandu brands through midnight or 1 am, depending on demand.
Amber Gas in Bara is filling for Siddhartha and STC brands, with staff member Panna Lal Sah saying the plant fills up to 1,200 cylinders daily for the two companies combined.
Leo Gas Udhyog Pvt. Ltd., also in Bara, is filling for the Lokpriya and Shreemaya brands. Operator Nirmal Khatri, who also serves as treasurer of the LP Gas Industry Association, said supply has been increased out of a sense of duty to the public during the disaster.
He noted that gas imports from India have continued uninterrupted, with about half a dozen tankers arriving at his plant daily. The factory is now running two shifts, 7 am to 3 pm and 3 pm to 11 pm, and sending out 5,000 cylinders a day in total, of which roughly 2,000-2,500 go to the local market and the remaining 3,000 to Kathmandu.
Super Gas in Parsa is likewise filling cylinders for Kathmandu’s Himal brand.
Until the Prithvi Highway is fully restored, Terai industries will continue filling and routing gas to Kathmandu via alternate roads in coordination with the Nepal Oil Corporation. While shortages persist in the Valley and some other districts, the Oil Corporation has stated that gas imports from India currently exceed market demand.
