The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has shown interest to provide funds to facilitate import of re-gasified LNG from India for implementing a 750-800 megawatt (MW) combined cycle power plant project worth US$ 550 million in Khulna, a top official said Monday.
"The Manila-based bank is willing to finance the project as it deals with cross-country energy businesses," he said.
The ADB has already provided fund to implement the project involving import of electricity to Bangladesh from India, he added.
It did not, however, say how much funds it would provide to implement the power plant project of state-owned North-West Power Generation Company Ltd (NWPGCL), the official added.
The NWPGCL aims to import re-gasified LNG from India to implement the planned power plant project.
It has already held talks with Indian H-Energy, which will facilitate import of LNG.
The H-Energy is working to build a LNG terminal with 8.0 million tonne per year capacity in West Bengal's Digha area, said sources.
The Indian authority is expected to issue work order for building the LNG terminal by June 2015. Its construction will be completed within three years to facilitate LNG import by June 2018.
"We shall use the H-Energy's terminal on payment basis," said a NWPGCL official who has been involved in talks to import LNG.
He said re-gasified LNG will be purchased from state-owned Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) or other interested state-run Indian firms, he said.
The NWPGCL has already held talks to import around 125 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd) equivalent of re-gasified LNG from India's West Bengal by June 2018 to run the planned power plant project.
The LNG import might be extended to 500 mmcfd and 1.0 billion cubic feet per day (Bcfd) in future, depending on requirement.
The NWPGCL has already held several rounds of talks with the GAIL and the H Energy to facilitate import of LNG for the power plant in south-western Bangladesh.
Construction of a total of 118 kilometre-long pipeline -- Kolkata-Benapole (72 km) and Benapole-Jessore (46 km) -- will be required to pump the LNG from India into Bangladesh's national gas grid.
Another state-owned company -- the Gas Transmission Company Ltd (GTCL) -- will build the gas transmission pipeline inside Bangladesh, while the GAIL of India will build it on their side.
Officials said, the government has moved to import LNG from different sources to cope with the mounting natural gas demand.
Different state-run companies have moved to build LNG import facilities, following the government's directive to diversify the country's energy sources.
As part of the moves, state-run Petrobangla signed an agreement with US Astra Oil and Excelerate Energy to build the country's first
LNG import terminal at Moheshkhali Island in the Bay of Bengal.
The offshore terminal will have a capacity of 5.0 million tonne per year. A final deal is to be inked on completion of legal vetting and approval by a cabinet committee.
Separately, the Power Cell, a state-owned entity under the ministry of power, energy and mineral resources (MPEMR), has short-listed three expressions of interest (EoIs) from interested parties to build and take a majority stake in Bangladesh's first onshore LNG terminal, to be located at Matarbari on Moheshkhali Island.
The Power Cell has moved to build the onshore LNG terminal in the south -- with a handling capacity of 3.5 million tonne per year -- on build-own-operate basis.
Bangladesh inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Qatar in January 2011 to import 4.0 million tonnes of LNG per year from the Qatar Petroleum. The MoU has been extended until June 2015. Final import deal of LNG is, however, yet to be signed.
mazizur.rahman@outlook.com
