UNB, Dhaka :
The government’s move for a top priority multi-client seismic survey in offshore gas blocks remains stuck for four months in a decision making process of the Cabinet Economic Affairs Committee, Energy Division official sources said.
The Cabinet body, following a rift in its meeting in August this year formed a high-powered committee, headed by the Law Minister, to review an Energy Division’s tender process for awarding contract.
The committee was asked to submit its report shortly, but the report has not been submitted yet, said the Cabinet Division officials.
Meanwhile, Energy Ministry officials said the government has missed this winter for its planned survey works in the Bay of Bengal. Rather, it has to wait for another year for the job as such works cannot be executed without dry season. Petrobangla chairman Istiaque Ahmad, who is a member of the committee, admitted the delay and said the committee held its concluding meeting last week.
“Now the Law Minister as head of the committee will place his report to the Cabinet body… We’ll be waiting for the Cabinet body meeting for decision,” he told UNB. Conducting the multi-client seismic survey is a long standing move of the Energy Division since the settlement of maritime boundary with neighboring India and Myanmar.
Energy Division had undertaken its first move about three years back.
But after selection of an international firm through tender process, the Prime Minister’s Office cancelled the process.
Again the Energy Division took a fresh move and the state-owned Petrobangla selected an international firm for conducting multi-client seismic survey to assess hydrocarbon potentials in offshore gas blocks.
The idea of multi-client survey is that the selected firm will conduct survey in the country’s maritime boundary at its own cost. But after completion of the survey it will share its findings with state-owned Petrobangla at a free of cost.
The selected firm will have a right to sell the findings and seismic data to aspirant international oil companies who want to participate in oil and gas exploration in the Bangladesh territory.
Bangladesh has long been trying to award its offshore gas blocks to international oil companies since its settlement of maritime boundary disputes with neighboring India and Myanmar, but its effort were not very successful. Many officials blamed the lack of seismic data of the gas blocks for failing to attract the international oil companies for the exploration in the blocks. However, neighboring India and Myanmar have been successful to award their offshore blocks because of available data, said the Petrobangla officials.
The government’s move for a top priority multi-client seismic survey in offshore gas blocks remains stuck for four months in a decision making process of the Cabinet Economic Affairs Committee, Energy Division official sources said.
The Cabinet body, following a rift in its meeting in August this year formed a high-powered committee, headed by the Law Minister, to review an Energy Division’s tender process for awarding contract.
The committee was asked to submit its report shortly, but the report has not been submitted yet, said the Cabinet Division officials.
Meanwhile, Energy Ministry officials said the government has missed this winter for its planned survey works in the Bay of Bengal. Rather, it has to wait for another year for the job as such works cannot be executed without dry season. Petrobangla chairman Istiaque Ahmad, who is a member of the committee, admitted the delay and said the committee held its concluding meeting last week.
“Now the Law Minister as head of the committee will place his report to the Cabinet body… We’ll be waiting for the Cabinet body meeting for decision,” he told UNB. Conducting the multi-client seismic survey is a long standing move of the Energy Division since the settlement of maritime boundary with neighboring India and Myanmar.
Energy Division had undertaken its first move about three years back.
But after selection of an international firm through tender process, the Prime Minister’s Office cancelled the process.
Again the Energy Division took a fresh move and the state-owned Petrobangla selected an international firm for conducting multi-client seismic survey to assess hydrocarbon potentials in offshore gas blocks.
The idea of multi-client survey is that the selected firm will conduct survey in the country’s maritime boundary at its own cost. But after completion of the survey it will share its findings with state-owned Petrobangla at a free of cost.
The selected firm will have a right to sell the findings and seismic data to aspirant international oil companies who want to participate in oil and gas exploration in the Bangladesh territory.
Bangladesh has long been trying to award its offshore gas blocks to international oil companies since its settlement of maritime boundary disputes with neighboring India and Myanmar, but its effort were not very successful. Many officials blamed the lack of seismic data of the gas blocks for failing to attract the international oil companies for the exploration in the blocks. However, neighboring India and Myanmar have been successful to award their offshore blocks because of available data, said the Petrobangla officials.
