Gas supply disrupted nationwide amid low pressure

Emergency maintenance at a floating liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal on the Maheshkhali bay island in Cox's Bazar has reduced gas supply across Bangladesh, leaving households and businesses grappling with low-pressure vexation.

Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company Ltd announced in an urgent notice on Saturday that one floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) had been taken offline for repairs, cutting supply to the national grid. As a result, residential, commercial, industrial, and CNG users under Titas's network may face low gas pressure until midnight Saturday.

Consumers in Dhaka and other regions reported difficulties, with many cooking stoves failing to ignite properly.

The company acknowledges the inconveniences and expresses regret, assuring that supply would normalise once maintenance concludes later in the night.

Petrobangla sources confirmed that the country already faced a supply shortfall compared to demand.

Maheshkhali's two floating terminals typically regasify 950 to 1,000 million cubic feet of imported LNG daily to feed the national grid amid domestic gas-production deficiency.

Titas has warned that "reduced pressure could disrupt cooking in households and hinder operations in industrial and commercial establishments".

The company says LNG "supply and pressure would gradually stabilise once the maintenance work is completed".

Azizjst@yahoo.com