Business Desk :
Mutual Trust Bank Ltd and JMI Group have signed a Tk380 crore syndicated loan deal for the latter’s LPG project.
It is said to be one of the biggest syndicated loans provided for the construction of a liquefied petroleum (LP) gas plant in Chittagong’s Sitakunda upazila.
The deal was signed in the presence of State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources, Nasrul Hamid, as chief guest at the Pan Pacific Sonargaon Dhaka on Sunday.
Mutual Trust Bank is the lead organizer of the loan facility, while Agrani Bank, NRB Bank, Uttara Finance, and Saudi Bangladesh Industrial and Agricultural Investment Company (SABINCO) are also associated with it.
Agrani Bank is slated to finance Tk150 crore out of Tk380 crore. State Minister Nasrul Hamid said the government is planning to supply the existing gas reserve more towards industries, where LPG can be a suitable alternative for households.
“We are trying to understand the market demand for LPG,” he added.
“Now we are also thinking about regulating its price.”
The State Minister added that their main challenge now is to provide affordable and uninterrupted energy.
Nasrul urged businessmen and banks to invest in planned industrial areas, which will help expedite gas and power connections in those areas.
Talking to the Dhaka Tribune, Mutual Trust Bank Managing Director Anis A Khan said: “As the stock of gas is running out in the country, JMI will work to supply LPG (currently imported from Qatar and Oman) and also to build its containers in the country. We are financing them to increase that gas supply.”
Md Abdur Razzaq, managing director of the JMI Group, said they started their business with a capital of Tk312 crore. “Now our businesses have expanded and we currently employ around 6,000 employees.”
