Chittagong has been suffering from a severe gas crisis for the last four years since the end of 2013 and the manufacturers including, garment industries and domestic consumers are extremely frustrated over the problem that the poses biggest hindrance to economic advancement in the country's commercial hub that hosts the prime seaport with most of the major heavy industries, three export processing zones (EPZs) and three other giant economic and industrial zones in the making.
The daily gas supply to Chittagong region fluctuates between 180 and 200 million cubic feet per day (mcfd) against the demand ofor 350 mcfd, according to officials of the Chittagong gas distribution authority Karnaphuli Gas Distribution Co (KGDC) while the actual supply is far below.
One of the major industrial conglomerates in Chittagong observed that the government drew up a plan on LNG (liquefied natural gas) in a big way but it should immediately notify a timeframe of when the gas will be supplied to all industries and who will apply for LNG. It is high time the government takes a pragmatic decision and seeks demand notices from all aspirants of gas in the Chittagong area so that planning for new industries can take place immediately.
The gas supply situation was slightly better as long as production in the Sangu-11 gas field was normal. But closure of it has exacerbated the shortage of gas supply in Chittagong since September 2013 when the gas field was completely abandoned.
Production is also hampered in most of the garment factory-intensive areas in the city and factories in the Sitakunda heavy industrial area, Kalurghat heavy industrial area, Nasirabad heavy industrial area, Oxygen industrial area, Mohra industrial area and other industrial areas.
The country's gas availability created opportunities for massive gas-based industrialisation in the region in fertiliser, power and re-rolling industries while some plants were also converted to the gas-fuel system. Besides, some new industrial zones have sprung up over the last decades in the private sector. One such industrial zone sof Saad Musa Group built its industrial park on a wide area of land at Anwara on the southern bank of the Karnaphuli at an estimated cost of nearly Tk 15.0 billion in 2011.
Sources in the Petrobangla say they have no plan to supply more gas to Chittagong as they do not have any extra gas. Industrialists, investors and trade body leaders have been urging the KGDC since 2006 to take measures to augment the gas supply in view of the depleting gas reserves. Businesses have also urged the government to import fertilizer for agriculture and arrange temporary suspension of gas supply to KAFCO (Karnaphuli Fertilizer Co) and CUFL (Chittagong Urea Fertilizer Ltd) just to keep the production flow of the industries uninterrupted until normalisation of gas supply in the country.
The number of household connections of gas in Chittagong city is 1 27, 000, commercial connections 2700 and industrial connections 1,048. The household gas users have alleged that domestic burners are running almost dry during early morning to noon. They do not get the gas supply from 7.00 am to l.00 pm. Similarly, gas is not available by the evening. Gas is available after 10.00 pm but the pressure is very low. Some areas in the port city get gas supplies for a particular period of time while others not even at that time.
Residents say they are not getting gas even for a few hours a day but they have to pay the bill of the KGDC as usual at the end of the month.
They said that domestic burners that run almost dry of gas from 6.00 am to 2.00 pm are in the densely-populated areas like Bakolia, Rahattarpole, Bahaddarhat, Zakir Hossain Road, Dampara, Khulsi, Ashkhar Dighi, Pahartali, Oxygen, Hamzarbag, Muradpur, Love Lane, Halishahar etc. Families of these areas buy parota, ruti, tea and other food items from the nearby restaurants but return empty as the teastalls and restaurants face the same crisis.
When contacted, Mahfuzul Huq Shah, former director of Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry and currently standing committee member of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industries, said the supply crunch would ease with availability of the imported LNG by June 2018.
He said the gas authority cannot supply gas as per demand of the industries, readymade garment units and other consumers. The government is certainly thinking over the matter. Construction of the LNG pipeline has almost completed and the storage facilities are also nearing completion. All these projects are scheduled to be completed by June next, he said.
Manager (customer management) of the KGDC Anupam Datta said the demand for gas in the city is 350 mcfd but they are not getting gas supply from the national grid. There was a time when they used to get 290 mcfd of gas for Chittagong and the amount of supply was 240 to 250 mcfd on an average. But it has come down below 202 mcfd now. Gas supply has also been suspended to the power plants and KAFCO. The CUFL only is getting 45 mcfd of gas.
Acknowledging that not only the domestic consumers but also the industrialists are suffering the gas shortage, the KGDC sources hinted that the crisis would persist as long as the LNG terminal at Moheshkhali is constructed and the related pipeline is installed.
The issue of gas crisis in Chittagong region was conveyed to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina during the inauguration of the World Trade Centre of the Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry in January last year on the occasion of 100 years of the CCCI.
She said that the gas problem in Chittagong would cease to exist after the import from the bordering Indian state of Tripura or the LNG terminal is constructed.
The CCCI leaders at that time stated that the problem of gas was severely hampering regular production in factories. They said Dhaka got seven gas pipelines while Chittagong being the major industrial hub was facing a severe supply crisis for the last several years with a single pipeline. The businesses of Chittagong have long been demanding construction of a second gas pipeline.
They said the only one pipeline to supply gas to Chittagong is insufficient to meet the increasing demand. Construction of the new pipeline from Bakhrabad started long ago, but that has not yet reached the Fouzderhat point of Chittagong. Electricity supply is also problematic in the region as production in three major power plants in the public sector remains suspended due to lack of gas supply.
© 2024 - All Rights with The Financial Express
