A-1 jet fuel auto pipeline at issue

The third terminal at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) is likely to face a major setback from day one of its operation for non-completion of laying an automated pipeline for A-1 jet refuelling.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) is all set to commence partial operation in October and full operation by June 2024, midway through the pipeline project, according to sources.
The project was programmed for completion on 31 December 2022.
Consequentially, the airlines to be operated from the terminal at issue will have to rely on the conventional system to refuel their aircraft, it is alleged.
The incomplete pipeline from Pitolganj (near Kanchan bridge) to Kurmitola aviation depot will force the project implementer Padma Oil Company Ltd (POCL) to carry fuel through tankers, lorries and trucks from Godnail oil depot of Narayanganj.
Kurmitola is around 40 kilometres away from Godnail.
"Refuelling of aircraft at the third terminal will be difficult without implementing the aviation fuel-carrying pipeline," said Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) chairman ABM Azad on Saturday.
It would be a smart terminal having an option of a modern fuel hydrant system with the 16-km automated A-1 jet fuel-carrying pipeline, he told the FE.
Sources said the laying of the underground pipeline to carry A-1 jet fuel, also known as aviation fuel, from Pitolganj to Kurmitola was initiated in September 2017 to facilitate refuelling at first and second terminals.
The pipeline project was initiated six years ago to remove hassles of refuelling at its two existing terminals at the HSIA, a senior CAAB official said.
The new terminal will put a strain on the current fuel-loading mechanism in aircraft, he added.
The building of the third terminal was initiated two years later in 2019 to accommodate operations of increased numbers of airlines with higher frequencies with state-of-the-art technologies.
Citing hazards of carrying jet fuel by road, Mr Azad said, "Lorries carrying flammable jet fuel can originate fire incidents on road and can be dangerous for other vehicles too."
Non-completion of the pipeline-laying project means several hundred oil tank lorries will have to ply daily from Godnail to the HSIA with aviation fuel supplies.
These tankers might create extra pressure on other vehicles, thus leading to congestion on road, observed the POCL, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the BPC.
Handling so many lorries from Godnail daily is 'impossible,' too, it said, adding that full operation of the terminal would not be possible without implementing the pipeline project.
Sources apprehend that huge quantities of jet fuel are at risk of pilferage daily due to manual handling and road transportation.
When contacted, POCL managing director Md Masudur Rahman said efforts are there to complete the installation of the pipeline soon for smooth operation of the third terminal.
Covid was out of the way, but the project remained halted since August 2022 for higher equipment prices and freight charges globally, said the BPC chief.
The Russia-Ukraine war contributed to further escalation in prices along local currency devaluation and US dollar crunch, he added.
Sources said lack of coordination among stakeholders also led to a delay in the project work.
The contractor Nou Kolllan Foundation (NKF), an affiliate of Bangladesh Navy, recently came up with a proposal to raise the project cost to Tk 3.39 billion to implement it.
Mr Azad said the Energy and Mineral Resources Division under the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources was scrutinising the proposal.
Officials said the pipeline project cost was earmarked at Tk 1.83 billion in November 2017, when the first deal was done to implement it.
The cost later escalated to Tk 2.67 billion when a revised deal was inked in May 2022.
The POCL has so far given Tk 1.17 billion to the NKF, which has installed almost half the pipeline and built 5,000-tonne capacity three fuel storage tanks.
It has also readied two more big water tanks for supplying water and also to douse fire at Pitolganj depot as part of the project work.
The NKF has imported some equipment, which lies on the project site unsafe, simply flouting storage guidelines and standards for no warehouse, which is affecting the product quality. Again, some sophisticated equipment wait for release from the port for a long time.
The warranty period of most equipment is also going to expire soon due to this delay in project work, according to the officials.
The project includes the construction of a dispatch terminal, filling stations, a jetty on Sitalakkhya, blast-proof control building, storage facility, electrical, firefighting, telecoms and installation of automated control systems.
Once implemented, 836,000 tonnes of A-1 jet fuel could be carried through the pipeline annually to feed Kurmitola depot.
The pipeline is estimated to save around Tk 260 million annually, according to an economic study of the project.
azizjst@yahoo.com