Kuwait consumes 46,700 cooking gas cylinders daily
Ahmed Maghrabi
LPG cylinder sales in the Kuwaiti market reached high levels during the 2025-2026 fiscal year, reflecting the daily demand for one of the commodities most closely tied to household life. Local sales of 12-kilogram LPG cylinders amounted to approximately 17.04 million units from the Shuwaikh and Um Al-Aish factories, equating to a daily average of roughly 46,690 cylinders.
Data obtained by Al-Anbaa reveals that the country’s LPG filling and distribution system continued its operational and commercial performance throughout 2025-2026, supported by the Shuwaikh and Um Al-Aish factories, which form the cornerstone of supplying the local market. This supply is facilitated by a wide distribution network extending to various residential areas.
Total production by these manufacturers during the past fiscal year reached 17.28 million 12-kilogram cylinders, against local sales of 17.04 million units, highlighting the scale of operational efforts required to continuously meet consumer needs throughout the year. The recorded sales volume equates to a monthly average of approximately 1.42 million cylinders. Furthermore, the quantity of gas filled into the sold cylinders during the year amounted to roughly 204,490 metric tons of LPG, based on the 12-kilogram cylinder capacity.
Um Al-Aish factory led LPG cylinder sales during the fiscal year, with a total of 9.13 million cylinders, representing approximately 53.59% of the manufacturers' total sales. The factory’s production reached 9.29 million cylinders, recording a 2.2% increase compared to the previous year, with a similar growth of 2.2% in total sales.
As for the Shuwaikh factory, it recorded local sales of 7.9 million cylinders during 2025/2026, accounting for approximately 46.41% of the manufacturers' total sales. Its production reached 7.99 million cylinders, an increase of 3.57% over the previous year, while its total sales rose by 3.32%.
These figures underscore the importance of these manufacturers in securing a basic need for households and the local market. This is particularly significant as the propane and butane gases produced by the LPG system are used locally to supply homes and facilities with cooking cylinders, alongside other industrial applications.
**Production Capacity**
Kuwait possesses production capacity that significantly exceeds current demand. The Shuwaikh factory has an annual production capacity of approximately 13 million 12-kilogram cylinders, while the Um Al-Aish factory’s capacity reaches 15 million cylinders annually. This brings the total combined production capacity of the manufacturers to approximately 28 million cylinders per year.
This indicates that the current production capacity provides a wide margin above the sales volume recorded in 2025-2026, supporting the supply system’s ability to handle local market needs and future demand growth. According to the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC), the operation of the Um Al-Aish factory enhanced Kuwait’s LPG cylinder filling capacity by approximately 160%. The combined production capacity of the Shuwaikh and Um Al-Aish factories is now sufficient to meet local market needs until 2030, alongside increased storage capacity and the strengthening of the strategic LPG reserve.
**83 Branches Covering Kuwait’s Regions**
The domestic gas system is not limited to production and filling operations. The report indicates that the company meets local market needs through a distribution network comprising 83 "gas branch" centers distributed across various regions of the country, contributing to the delivery of cylinders to consumers and ensuring regular supply continuity.
The Shuwaikh factory includes a fleet of distribution trucks for delivering LPG cylinders to distribution centers in various regions of Kuwait. It also features a strategic storage system enhanced by the addition of six tanks with a total capacity of 6,000 metric tons, which, according to KPC data, is sufficient to meet local market needs for up to 14 days. Conversely, the Um Al-Aish factory serves as an additional pillar for supply security, established as a strategic alternative to the Shuwaikh factory to enhance the country’s production and storage capacity. It includes six buried high-efficiency tanks, along with maintenance workshops and a gas transportation fleet.
**Safety at the Heart of the Gas System**
The domestic LPG cylinder system holds particular importance given the nature of the product and its direct use within homes, making safety and quality requirements an essential part of filling, storage, transportation, and distribution operations. KPC emphasizes its commitment to quality, occupational health, safety, security, and environmental standards in the filling and distribution of LPG for the local market. This commitment is part of a policy aimed at providing high-quality products and services, maintaining a safe operational environment, reducing accident risks, and protecting workers, the community, and assets.
Furthermore, the modern infrastructure of the Shuwaikh and Um Al-Aish factories supports the system’s ability to provide stable and safe gas cylinders to consumers through filling, storage, and maintenance facilities, transportation fleets, and a distribution network spread across various regions of Kuwait.
**750 Fils**
Against the backdrop of the production, storage, and distribution system that ensures the delivery of LPG cylinders to homes, the selling price of a domestic gas cylinder is 750 fils.
