Kathmandu residents who were forced to buy cooking gas cylinders of companies based outside the valley during last year’s fuel crisis will be able to exchange them for local brands designated by the Nepal LP Gas Industry Association.

For example, consumers holding an empty cylinder of Shakti Gas can swap it for a cylinder of Everest Gas or Sugam Gas, according to the association.

The scheme will start on Sunday and last for a week, and there is no charge, said the association. It has designated six liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) bottling companies where customers can swap their empty cylinders.

During the fuel crisis last year triggered by India’s trade embargo, desperate householders in the valley had bought gas cylinders from wherever they could get them across the country.

Since no exchange arrangement exists, people have had to keep the empty cylinders with them. It is estimated that each household has three to four empty cylinders of different brands.

“We have agreed to allow customers to swap their LPG cylinders which were brought from outside the Kathmandu Valley,” said Shiva Prasad Ghimire, president of the association.

There are 26 LPG bottling companies operating in the Kathmandu Valley and 27 companies elsewhere in the country. “We also believe that people from other districts have bought a large number of cylinders issued by companies in the valley,” said Ghimire.

Gas bottlers have been under pressure from customers, consumer rights activists and even the parliamentary Industry, Commerce and Consumer Welfare Committee to allow the public to exchange gas cylinders issued by different companies.

The Supply Ministry and Nepal Oil Corporation have also given the green signal to bottlers to implement the exchange scheme.

The bottling plants said gas dealers and retailers have not been allowed to exchange empty cylinders of different companies as they could charge money from the people. “The scheme is free of charge,” said Ghimire. “We have issued a list of the companies where customers can exchange their cylinders.”

Consumer rights activists said that bottlers should begin sending back excess cylinders to the respective companies outside the valley to prevent shortages there. According to gas bottlers, customers are holding a large number of empty cylinders resulting in shortages in the market.

“As long as customers keep empty cylinders in their homes, there will be gas shortages,” said Prem Lal Maharjan, president of the National Consumer Forum. He also expressed concern about dealing with the large number of LPG cylinders that were imported from India during the crisis period and never returned.

Gas dealers said that there was no official record of the number of LPG cylinders that entered Nepal from India, but they said it could be huge.