The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is doing spadework to enhance financial support for Bangladesh to help the latter meet its mounting energy demand, competent sources said.
The Manila-based multilateral donor agency is now searching out necessary fields where its funding could better help the energy sector, a senior official of state-owned Petrobangla told the FE.
"It has appointed a consultant to help in selecting the potential energy sectors for assistance," he said.
The ADB is keen on bankrolling projects related to installation of compression stations, and gas-transmission pipelines to help carry natural gas to the user-end.
Petrobangla earlier had sought ADB funding worth around US$500 million for developing gas sector-related infrastructures, said the official.
The Asian bank has already provided funds for implementing a project involving import of electricity into Bangladesh from India, he added.
It has also shown interest in assisting import of re-gasified LNG from India for feeding a 750-to 800-megawatt (MW) combined-cycle power-plant project, costing US$ 550 million, in Khulna.
The country requires huge funds to carry out necessary energy-sector development activities.
Petrobangla last year conducted an internal survey and found out that it requires drilling 41 wells-comprising 13 development, 8 appraisal, 13 workover and 7 exploratory wells-in Titas, Bankhrabad, Kamta, Bhola, Haripur, Koilashtila, Bianibazar, Chittagong and Rashidpur gas fields.
The corporation also needs to build 12 gas- processing plants in the fields, and 45 gas- compression stations and generators, comprising 33 wellhead gas compressors, 10 gas generators, a fractionation plant and a gas compressor, in fields operated by state-owned Bangladesh Gas Fields Company Ltd.
The country requires carrying out 2,570-kilometre (two-dimensional) 2D and 3D seismic surveys in several onshore areas and building 511 kilometres (317 miles) of natural gas pipelines to link fields to domestic markets.
It expected these works would increase natural gas output by 1,060 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd) once completed, said officials.
Currently the country's overall natural gas production is hovering around 2,500mmcfd against the demand for over 3,000mmcfd.
The short supply of natural gas has forced the state-run gas entities to go for rationing the fuel to power plants, fertiliser factories, industries and households.
mazizur.rahman@outlook.com
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