Anisul Islam Noor :
The government has decided to build two land-based LNG terminals to import 13 to15 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas to increase the country’s gas supply to 2,000 million cubic feet per day.
The two LNG terminals will be set up in the Maheshkhali Island of Cox’s Bazaar and Paira in Patuakhali, but no tender will be invited.
It is noteworthy that the energy ministry on November 4 issued an order saying that the LNG terminals would be set up under the Speedy Supply of Power and Energy (Special Provisions) Act, 2010, branded as ‘Indemnity Act’ by critics.
The act gives officials indemnity against any legal proceeding for any irregularities in the implementation of any project. A nine-member committee headed by Energy Division Secretary Md Abu Bakar Siddique has been formed to process the unsolicited proposals for setting up the LNG terminals, according to the order.
Petrobangla is now implementing a project under the Indemnity act to supply 500 mmcfd gas to the national grid after re-gasification of imported LNG through a floating terminal to be set up near Maheshkhali Island in the Bay of Bengal.
The government’s decision for implementing the costly projects by passing tenders came one year and a half after it conceived the plans, officials said. The energy division has already asked Petrobangla to appoint a consultant for technical support to engage contractors to set up the LNG terminals, they said.
The officials said that the authorities concerned did not have any experience in dealing with land-based LNG terminals. On October 28, State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid at an international conference said that the government had planned to set up the land-based LNG terminals by 2019 to meet the growing demand for natural gas.
An energy division official said that Petrobangla and US-based Excelerate Energy would sign the contract by December to set up the offshore LNG terminal in 16 months after the signing of the contract. Energy division and Petrobangla achieved the progress five years after the government had taken the plan to increase gas supply by 500 mmcfd from imported LNG after re-gasification through the floating terminal.
On February 26, Petrobangla and Excelerate Energy signed a document that spelt out the contract terms. The agreed terms would require Petrobangla to pay $ 0.474 to Excelerate as the charge for handling each million of British Thermal Units of energy content for 15 years.
The government has decided to build two land-based LNG terminals to import 13 to15 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas to increase the country’s gas supply to 2,000 million cubic feet per day.
The two LNG terminals will be set up in the Maheshkhali Island of Cox’s Bazaar and Paira in Patuakhali, but no tender will be invited.
It is noteworthy that the energy ministry on November 4 issued an order saying that the LNG terminals would be set up under the Speedy Supply of Power and Energy (Special Provisions) Act, 2010, branded as ‘Indemnity Act’ by critics.
The act gives officials indemnity against any legal proceeding for any irregularities in the implementation of any project. A nine-member committee headed by Energy Division Secretary Md Abu Bakar Siddique has been formed to process the unsolicited proposals for setting up the LNG terminals, according to the order.
Petrobangla is now implementing a project under the Indemnity act to supply 500 mmcfd gas to the national grid after re-gasification of imported LNG through a floating terminal to be set up near Maheshkhali Island in the Bay of Bengal.
The government’s decision for implementing the costly projects by passing tenders came one year and a half after it conceived the plans, officials said. The energy division has already asked Petrobangla to appoint a consultant for technical support to engage contractors to set up the LNG terminals, they said.
The officials said that the authorities concerned did not have any experience in dealing with land-based LNG terminals. On October 28, State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid at an international conference said that the government had planned to set up the land-based LNG terminals by 2019 to meet the growing demand for natural gas.
An energy division official said that Petrobangla and US-based Excelerate Energy would sign the contract by December to set up the offshore LNG terminal in 16 months after the signing of the contract. Energy division and Petrobangla achieved the progress five years after the government had taken the plan to increase gas supply by 500 mmcfd from imported LNG after re-gasification through the floating terminal.
On February 26, Petrobangla and Excelerate Energy signed a document that spelt out the contract terms. The agreed terms would require Petrobangla to pay $ 0.474 to Excelerate as the charge for handling each million of British Thermal Units of energy content for 15 years.
