Reza Mahmud :
Titas Gas Transmissions and Distributions Company Limited will install one lakh more prepaid meters in the capital city soon, sources said.
Aiming to reduce wastage and increase capabilities of preserving natural gas for gearing up sustainability of the environment, Titas has earlier installed three lakh and 20 thousand prepaid meters in the residential areas in Dhaka.
The project was started in 2015 and completed in December 2021 instead of the December this year, as per the stipulated schedule.
Sources said, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) donated 3,20,000 prepaid meters under their government’s Official Development Assistance debt package.
About Tk 753.84 crore was the estimated cost for the project which the Titas has installed by two separate phases.
Officials of Titas Gas, told The New Nation that it is very important to install more prepaid meters to reduce gas wasting. They said as the first phase project work ended one year before from the scheduled time, the officials have revived highly to start more projects soon.
Meanwhile, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on power energy and mineral resources affairs ministry has given directives to Titas gas company to install one lakh more prepaid gas meters in the capital as soon as possible. As per the directives, Titas made a plan to install 50,000 prepaid meters in first phase and the rests in the second segment.
When contacted, Engineer Md. Haronur Rashid Mullah, Managing Director of Titas Gas Transmissions and Distributions Company Limited told The New Nation on Saturday, “We have made a plan to install one lakh new prepaid gas meters for ensuring wastage free supply to the consumers.”
The Managing Director said that this fresh project will be maintained with the company’s own fund.
As per the officials data of Titas, there are about 28,56,000 legal gas connections in the capital.
So far three lakh and 20 thousand prepaid meters have been installed.
Those are remaining in Gulshan, Dhanmondi, Mirpur and adjacent areas.
Replying to a query, one of the Titas officials said it is yet to be asserted as to how much gas wasting can be prevented with the prepaid meters.
“But, consumers now can pass their month only costing Tk 500 to 700 instead of the previous Tk 975 after installing the meter,” one of the officials said.
The previous gas supply meters were imported from Japan.
But it is not finalised yet that from which country the latest meters would be imported. Sources said, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia and several other countries manufacture and exports such meters. “The company will invite tender in this purpose soon. Then it will be decided from which country the meters would be imported,” one of the official said.
