THE IMPORTANCE OF LPG
By Antonio Rubens Silva Silvino,
CEO of Liquigas Distribuidora
LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) is a high value-added product. Its multiple uses and qualities consolidate its privileged position in the energy market, accommodating the needs of different customer profiles.
This high calorific value input, considered as one of the successors of electric energy, affords advantages that set it apart even more from other sources of energy, such as being more economical, compared to other fuels, and excellent quality insofar as clean consumption is concerned. On account of this, LPG rated as a sustainable input, as it assists in the efforts to preserve the environment. Furthermore, it is also the safest substitute for firewood and coal, fuels that can be health hazards when used to cook food, a fairly common practice in Brazil, particularly among low-income families.Among its many qualities and advantages, LPG's portability is another differential to bear in mind, since it does not require building gas pipelines in order to supply it to 99% of the Brazilian households, a penetration index well above those of basic services such as power and running water. Additionally, for residential use, LPG is much more economical than natural gas and even than electricity for certain applications, such as heating water.
Considering the positive aspects of LPG and its broad usage in several consumption segments, holding the 22nd World LP Gas Forum (the industry’s most important event) in Rio de Janeiro is singularly relevant, including for the development of the domestic economy, as it will not only explore the growth potential there is for this product, but also open new business opportunities for it.
In this regard, Liquigás Distribuidora, a company that has a 56-year track record in the LPG industry and a part of the Petrobras System since 2004, when taken-over by Petrobras Distribuidora S.A., has been adopting the best practices and the Petrobras System’s governance guidelines to attain the objectives and the growth goals set forth both in its Strategic Plan and in its business Plan. In the next five years, the company’s expects to make investments in the order of R$724 million, as set forth by its investment plan.
Liquigás currently leads the 13-kilo bottle trade and goes to great lengths to improve its relationship with the market, maintaining delivery quality, speed, and regularity through of its 4,000-strong retailer network. The company operates in the bottled LPG segment only via retailers who are duly registered at the National Petroleum Agency (ANP) and focuses its efforts on supplying nearly 35 million final consumers, reaching the most remote areas in Brazil. In the LPG bulk segment, meanwhile, the company supplies approximately 30,000 commercial and industrial customers directly, with quality products and services.
Always attentive to market needs, the company offers differentiated solutions to its customers, such as individualized consumption meters for condominiums, FLEXGAS for industries, and the so-called P-8, the eight-kilo bottle. Aimed mainly at lower-income families, P-8 is an alternative to P-13 and plays a relevant socioeconomic role by turning LPG into a more affordable product and, as such, one that can be used to help drive the inclusion of this population in the use of a safer fuel.
These innovations demand ongoing investments by the company, which will soon inaugurate its most recent bottling unit, in Duque de Caxias, Rio de Janeiro, an important project aimed to ensure Liquigás bigger scale and competitiveness in the state and, as a result, boost its domestic market share.
These resources will not only propel the growth of the company, but also drive the expansion of the entire market that is directly or indirectly related to LPG, boost the domestic infrastructure and, above all, generate jobs and income.
All of the efforts the company has undertaken are aimed to turn Liquigás Distribuidora into the top of mind of its audiences of interest, in addition to collaborating to promote the sustainable growth, both of the company and of the Brazilian LPG market by means of ethical and responsible operations, careful people management, and by fighting distortions in the sector, not the least of which the irregular gas bottles trade by clandestine retailers.
