Consumption of the 19-kg commercial liquefied petroleum gas cylinders that serve as a pointer to the business at eateries and restaurants remain muted in Telangana, more than ten days after the lockdown norms were relaxed for the hospitality sector.
It is a reflection of the situation on the ground, both LPG trade leaders and officials of national oil company say, pointing out to how only some eateries and hotels have reopened.
Many are in a wait and watch mode to gauge the customer response, understand the impact of the new seating norms in restaurants as well as await the return of their workers.
The offtake of the 19-kg cylinder is far from normal, but showing signs of recovery, an official of a national oil marketing company said. The Telangana market, however, is not an exception as commercial LPG sale across the country is down. At the national level, the sale in the first fortnight of this month is only around 56% of what was registered in the same period last year.
According to trade numbers, 1.02 lakh units of 19-kg LPG cylinders were sold in the State during June 1-15 as against 2.52 lakh units. Besides hotels and eateries, other major consumers of commercial LPG are various industries, poultries and cloud kitchens. Of these, some use bigger, 40-47 kg, cylinders.
But supplies to those in the food business is important as the volumes are high, sources said, adding how the present offtake numbers are better compared to those in April and May. The decline in consumption of commercial LPG in April was around 84% year-on-year, while the usage was down 61% in May.
Sources in oil companies were confident of improvement in June, with the offtake likely to down only by 40% compared to June 2019. According to them, with more offices reopening and hotels expected to see an increase in the footfalls, a pick up in commercial LPG is bound to be there. An increasing number of roadside eateries and tea stalls are also back to business.
The price of commercial LPG, which is subject to revise every month, increased by ₹108 this month taking the price of 19-kg Indane refill to ₹1,288 each.