Gas sales deal with Lafarge unfair: BERC

Chairman of the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) AR Khan has termed a gas deal with multinational Lafarge Surma Cement Ltd as 'unfair' after an initial scrutiny.

"The gas deal with Lafarge is unfair and it should not have been done in the way it was undertaken," he told the FE.

He said state-run Jalalabad Gas Transmission and Distribution Systems Ltd (JGTDSL) has submitted a copy of its gas sales agreement with Lafarge.

Gas price should not be constant for long 20 years, Mr Khan said. Lafarge is providing maximum US2.8 per Mcf (1,000 cubic feet) to the JGTDSL under the deal, which is less than those of some other domestic clients and much less than the international price, he said.

Sources said the gas marketing and distribution company inked the gas sales deal with Lafarge when a 50 kg sack of cement was being sold at around Tk 200 in local market, he said.

But currently the cement price in local market increased more than double to around Tk 450 per sack, but the gas price remains the same, he added.

Energy expert Professor Nurul Islam of the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) termed gas sales to the multinational company as 'de-facto export' of natural gas.

He stressed the need for transparency in gas sales agreements with multinational companies.

The BERC should fix natural gas tariff for the multinational companies operating in the country like that of local companies, he said.

azizjst@yahoo.com