Govt mulling urgent LNG import to offset gas crisis

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M Azizur Rahman
The government might go for immediate import of liquefied natural gas (LNG) through special tankers known as floating, storage and re-gasification units (FSRUs) to assuage the severe gas crisis the country is now facing, officials said Tuesday.
"We are weighing out ways to import LNG as quickly as possible through specialised tankers having the degasification facility to cope with the mounting gas demands," Energy Secretary Mohammad Mohsin told the FE Tuesday.
Separately, the energy ministry would also stick to its initial plan to build at least one LNG import terminal in Chittagong with a capacity of handling 3.5 million tonnes of gas per year to tackle the country's rising energy crisis, he said.
The energy ministry has moved to import LNG on an urgent basis as the country's perennial gas crisis turned more acute with the advent of winter.
Apart from the gas-guzzling industrial units, fertiliser factories and power plants, the residents are now feeling the pinch of gas crisis due to low pressure and inadequate supplies.
"We have already initiated talks with the reputed global players who have the capacity to provide LNG through FSRUs to meet the short-term demand," Petrobangla Chairman Dr Hussain Monsur told the FE.
He said: "We are not yet sure about what volumes we will be importing, but we want to try and bring in the maximum that we can."
The gas will first be supplied to the port city of Chittagong where the supply shortfall is most acute, Monsur said.
"We are only able to supply 170 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd) of gas to Chittagong against the demand for 300 mmcfd" he said.
The Cairn Energy operated offshore Sangu gas field, which was once the lifeline for Chittagong, is now supplying only around 35 mmcfd of gas, down from 220 mmcfd several years ago.
The field is feared to run out of gas in the next two years, the Petrobangla chairman said.
"We could not provide substantial gas to Chittagong to make up the gas supply shortfall out of Sangu due to the country's overall gas crisis along with inadequate gas compression stations," Dr Monsur said.
The LNG supply would be crucial for Chittagong as there is limited capacity in existing pipelines to take gas to southeastern Chittagong from the energy-rich northeastern region, Monsur said.
The Ashuganj-Bakhrabad gas pipeline does not have the capacity to carry gas beyond 185 mmcfd from northeastern region to the southeastern Chittagong.
Pointing to the government move to build a $1.0 billion LNG import terminal in Chittagong, the Petrobangla chairman said the project along with several large power plant projects, was focused during the London road show in December 2009.
"Several globally reputed firms had shown interest to set up the LNG terminal during the road show," he said.
The LNG terminal project would also be put on offer during the next two road shows in New York and Singapore later this month, he added.