This page provides a regional price comparison between suppliers of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinders.
There is also a mains (reticulated) natural gas price comparison.
Contents
Introduction
To produce apples-for-apples pricing, I have included each supplier’s cost per year for the rental of two 45kg LPG cylinders.
For each region, I have charted yearly gas cost against the number of gas cylinders used. The lowest coloured line represents the cheapest supplier.
Click on each chart to see an expanded version.
In most regions, Energy Online is the clear price winner up to 11 bottles per year, above which the Genesis Energy Value Plans become the cheapest.
Our gas is with Energy Online, so you can get an extra $50 credit here (on top of the standard new customer offer).
North Island Bottled LPG Gas Prices
Northland
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
Auckland
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
Waikato
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
Bay of Plenty
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
Hawke’s Bay
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
Manawatu
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
Taranaki
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
Wellington
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
South Island Bottled LPG Gas Prices
Nelson, Marlborough & West Coast
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
Canterbury
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
Otago
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
Southland
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
LPG Gas Bottle Expiry Date
In New Zealand, LPG cylinders are required by law to be tested every ten years. The testing and certification must be undertaken by an authorized LPG testing facility.
It is illegal to fill a gas bottle that is past its expiry date. But if the bottle still contains gas, you are allowed to use it past the expiry date. but you are allowed to use it, past the expiry date, if it still contains gas.
To check last inspection date of the gas cylinder, look for an date stamp on the neck, collar or foot of the gas cylinder. The date will likely be in the format YY/MM, so ’17/02″ would indicate that the cylinder was last tested in February of 2017.
After the 10 year period has elapsed, the cylinder will need to be re-certified against the current standard.
If you are hiring gas bottles from your LPG provider, then you should be aware of the bottle expiry dates but your gas provider will manage these to ensure your cylinders remain in test.
Nathan’s Notes
LPG cylinder pricing and charts updated August 2017 from publicly available data. All prices include GST and are after prompt payment discount (if any).
Some suppliers are not included as either I could not obtain a reliable regional pricing list upon which to base the comparison.
I am only human, if you think I have made an error or something looks out of whack, drop me a line.
So about $2.2/kg, and with around 13kWh heat energy per kg (although will always waste some in exhaust), or about $0.17/kWh, given exhaust losses electricity is probably mostly cheaper.
Diesel at about $0.14/kWh is significantly cheaper than propane.
Interesting! I have not thought to calculate the kWh equivalent of bottled LPG before. I think the gas vs electricity tradeoff depends ultimately upon the end use. If water heating, then a modern Rinnai unit is 95-97% efficient from memory and only using energy when you need it, likely to work out cheaper than an older hot water cylinder. Conversely, if you can utilise offpeak or night rate power for water heating you may be onto a winner. Depending upon your lines company and setup. What’s most interesting for me in this calculation is how much more cost effective reticulated gas is (at around 7c / kWh) vs bottled.