Uruguay natural gas prices climb in July after June dip

Uruguay’s natural gas prices climbed in the double-digits in July after falling 2.3% in June.

Prices for the fuel rose 13.3% year-on-year, local energy consulting firm SEG Ingeniería said in a report, citing government data. 

Natural gas, along with firewood (2.73%), were the only energy items that rose in July. The industrial energy price index IPEI climbed 13% year-on-year, with the residential energy price index IPER rising 7.83%.

Annual consumer inflation was running at 9.56% in July, up from a reading of 7.30% in July 2021.  

Compared with Chile, Brazil and Argentina, Uruguay had the highest residential natural gas price, of US$2.23/m3. Prices in Chile were US$1.50/m3, with Brazil registering US$2.02/m3 and Argentina US$0.20/m3, according to the report.

Uruguay’s LPG price of US$1.54/kg, in contrast, was the second cheapest after Argentina, which registered US$0.48/kg. Chile’s was the highest, at US$1.93/kg, followed by Brazil (US$1.61/kg) and Paraguay (US$1.59/kg). 

Uruguay had the highest diesel and gasoline prices out of the five countries, registering US$1.58/l and US$1.97/l, respectively, the report states. Chile’s diesel, at US$1.04/l was the cheapest, with Argentina having the lowest priced gasoline, at US$1.07/l.

In the transport sector, last year's gasoline and diesel consumption grew 7% and 12%, respectively, according to the country’s 2021 national energy report. Power demand from electric vehicles almost doubled, to 4,600MWh. Amid a drive to reduce fossil fuel reliance, Uruguay is working to expand its electric vehicle fleet.