According to World LPGas Association, in countries of Western Europe and North America  in 2006-2007 , 48,2% of liquid petroleum gas  was consumed for  homes heating. Petrochemistry industry and gas motor  vehicles all together consumed  less than 35% of LPG.

 No doubt the same trend will be observed in Russia in near future because of massive individual housing building in Russian countryside. According to Federal authorities estimates,  by 2010 more than 50% of new  houses in Russia will be one family private houses.

 Still there is a great problem with natural gas supply in many regions of Russia. At average only 40% of Russian territory is gasified. Besides this gasification is spread very unevenly. For instance, the North West Federal region is gasified at 70% level. But this Federal region includes Sanct-Petersberg with its 100% gasification and  Archangel region with the level of gasification at  the level of 9% only. Therefore in the nearest future an alternative gas supply will be provided for new housing  in those places where there is no pipe line gas network.  And it will be based on propane-butane. One kilowatt of heat energy generated by propane-butane is 2 times less expensive than diesel fuel generation. Besides, existing Auto Gas  Fuelling Stations (AGFS) work for gas vehicles at only 10% of their capacity. After modernization of their storage systems and introduction of new LPG auto carriers these  AGFS can  function as virtual gas distribution centers at the nearby territory and can turn themselves from a position of gas retailers into wholesale vendors. One LPG carrier can easily supply with LPG 200-250 houses a month. The latter become permanent and reliable buyers of LPG from these AGFS which is very convenient and profitable.

Building of small scale autonomous gas distribution centers for several dozens of individual houses is a good business as such and it is affordable for the clients- houses owners.  It is estimated that such a gas distribution center for 40 houses will cost about  56 000 rubles per house ( about 1,5 thousand US Dollars in winter of 2009). Each house  during heating season ( in Russia it lasts no less than 6-8 months – from October to April inclusive) will consume no less than 1500-2000 liters of LPG a month, which proves that emerging LPG market for heating purposes is very perspective and profitable one.

                                             ( Russian LPG Auto Carrier)

                                           An Editorial  comment. 

2000 liters of LPG a month at the price of minimum 10 rubles per liter makes 20 000 rubles a month for heating purposes only. It is more than average monthly wages of a Russian employee. Which means that such gas supply can be afforded by well-off people only, by  those consumers  who own some business or are highly paid professional. For the great majority of Russian citizens LPG gas supply is too costly. Therefore the “perspective LPG market” is really good but it is limited  because LPG is too expensive for ordinary Russian consumers. 

In fact the number of well-off consumers is big enough but they work and have their high incomes in prosperous capitals ( Moscow and Sanct-Petersberg)  and big metropolitan cities with a population more than 1 million people.  They do build big houses but they do it near these metropolitan cities where the problem of gasification is not so acute as in depressive regions and villages where people have no extra money for autonomous gas heating systems. Rich people can easily afford the cost of such systems but the limited  number of such people does not allow to speak in terms of a mass consumers at this, indeed, profitable  emerging market for LPG.