IndianOil, the national oil company of India, has sought transit facility to carry liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to its bottling plants in Tripura and Mizoram through Chittagong, officials said.
The request was made as the company was encountering shortfall and logistic issues for meeting the growing demand for LPG from the north-eastern states of the country.
The company will source LPG from French company Totalgaz which has import facility near Chittagong and has surplus capacity after meeting the local demand.
The IndianOil will transport the bulk LPG from Totalgaz's depot by road tankers to its LPG plant in Tripura from a suitable border transit point.
The company has requested the ministry of commerce (MoC) to finalise working modalities based on bilateral trade agreement between Bangladesh and India so that it can start transportation of the product through Bangladesh territory.
In this connection it has also requested the MoC for finalising the charges relating to transportation, other services and costs as well as other relevant taxes and fees applicable for LPG import at Chittagong and movement by road tankers to Tripura.
Sources said before seeking transit facility the IndianOil had discussion with Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) for sourcing LPG from the state-run company. However, BPC officials informed the IndianOil officials that the company does not have surplus LPG; rather there is net shortfall of the item in Bangladesh.
Sources also said the IndianOil and the BPC are now in discussion for signing a deal to jointly develop LPG import infrastructure in the long run to meet the growing requirement of Bangladesh and parts of NE states of India.
According to media reports, Tripura has a demand of 172,535 LPG cylinders per month while IndianOil was able to supply 167,197 cylinders per month during last April-August period.
There are two LPG bottling plants in Tripura located at Bishalghar and Mohanpur. The Silchar bottling plant in Assam also supplies cylinders to meet the demand of North Tripura consumers.
An official at the MoC told the FE that in August last India sought transhipment facility at Ashuganj river port to carry fertiliser and steel cargoes to its Tripura state.
Earlier, on humanitarian grounds, it transported food grains and over-dimensional cargoes (ODC) for power plants to its north-eastern states using Bangladeshi ports.
The official said the issue of providing transit facility of LPG will be forwarded to the high-ups of the government for a decision. "We can't take decision at our end on this important matter."
Contacted, a senior official at the ministry of shipping (MoS) told the FE that Bangladesh is presently working to fix transit fees for Indian goods.
The issue of LPG transportation through Bangladesh territory can be settled only after the transit fees are fixed with consent from both the countries, he said.
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