0.3m tonnes urea to be imported from Qatar annually
Friday, 11 December 2009
FE Report
Bangladesh will import 300,000 tonnes of urea annually from Qatar under a state-to-state deal to meet the country's domestic demand and ensure smooth supply of urea during irrigation, officials said Wednesday.
The state-owned Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) signed a long-term contract with the Qatar Fertiliser Company (QAFCO) in Doha last week and initiated importing urea from the Middle Eastern country under the deal.
BCIC Chairman K H Masud Siddiqui and QAFCO Managing Director Khalifa Al Sowaidi signed the agreement in QAFCO headquarters.
The price has been negotiated at US$ 278.50 per tonne and the total annual consignment would cost US$ 83.5 million, a senior BCIC official told the FE Wednesday.
Bangladesh requires around 2.90 million tonnes of urea fertiliser annually to meet the local demand, while the local urea fertiliser factories can produce around 1.60 million tonnes of urea.
But this year's production from the local urea factories would slide as the government had suspended production in three urea factories to facilitate diversion of natural gas to power plants.
After six months' moratorium production in three factories started again in October last.
Industries ministry officials said apart from Qatar, Bangladesh has state-to-state deals with Saudi Arabia and China under which the BCIC imports around 500,000 tonnes of urea annually.
The BCIC would have to import the remaining 500,000 tonnes of urea from international market through tender, BCIC officials added.
Bangladesh will import 300,000 tonnes of urea annually from Qatar under a state-to-state deal to meet the country's domestic demand and ensure smooth supply of urea during irrigation, officials said Wednesday.
The state-owned Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) signed a long-term contract with the Qatar Fertiliser Company (QAFCO) in Doha last week and initiated importing urea from the Middle Eastern country under the deal.
BCIC Chairman K H Masud Siddiqui and QAFCO Managing Director Khalifa Al Sowaidi signed the agreement in QAFCO headquarters.
The price has been negotiated at US$ 278.50 per tonne and the total annual consignment would cost US$ 83.5 million, a senior BCIC official told the FE Wednesday.
Bangladesh requires around 2.90 million tonnes of urea fertiliser annually to meet the local demand, while the local urea fertiliser factories can produce around 1.60 million tonnes of urea.
But this year's production from the local urea factories would slide as the government had suspended production in three urea factories to facilitate diversion of natural gas to power plants.
After six months' moratorium production in three factories started again in October last.
Industries ministry officials said apart from Qatar, Bangladesh has state-to-state deals with Saudi Arabia and China under which the BCIC imports around 500,000 tonnes of urea annually.
The BCIC would have to import the remaining 500,000 tonnes of urea from international market through tender, BCIC officials added.