CHATTOGRAM, June 16: The works to set up the second unit of the Eastern Refinery Limited (ERL) is progressing in full swing now.
Tecnip of France has already submitted the design and layout plan to the ERL authority recently, concerned sources said.
Sources said, after getting the design and layout plan, the authority is going to start the engineering procurement and appointment of contractors for the construction of the plant now.
Anwar Shahadat, the Project Director (Engineering) of the project said, " We have already received the design and layout plan. We are working on the plan. We will appoint the contractors as soon as possible. The engineering procurement of the project is the next step of the venture."
Officials of the ERL said that the acquisition of land has already been completed. So, the construction work will be started within the current year after completing the further steps of the project.
According to the sources, process to second unit of the ERL, the state-owned lone oil refinery of the country which began from July last year is continuing now. The concerned officials said that design of the new plant of ERL authority reviewed the design and layout plan and the plan is almost finalized by the concerned authority. Besides, Bangladesh Government has started the development of acquired land now.
Officials of ERL said, "after completing the new project, the power to produce fuels of ERL will be increased. The ERL will refine more 3.0 million MT fuel."
State Minister for Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry Nasrul Hamid hoped that the construction of the second unit of ERL will start in 2019.
Nasrul Hamid told the journalists at a function in the port city earlier, "EIL is appointed as Consultant Company to set up second unit of ERL at Patenga. On behalf of Bangladesh, the EIL will supervise the construction project. Bangladesh government will pay taka 1.10 billion to EIL for supervising the project. However, Bangladesh will appoint contractors for construction of second unit of ERL at Patenga by tender soon."
Meanwhile, the secretary of the Fuel and Mineral Resource Ministry Najim Uddin Chowdhury visited the site of the second unit of ERL several times recently.
Sources said, BPC signed agreement with Tecnip of France for design of the new plant.
According to the sources, ERL with a capacity of refining around 3.5m tonnes of crude oil annually. BPC is negotiating with a Chinese state-owned firm Wuhun Engineering Company Ltd to implement the project.
ERL currently refines 1.3m tonnes of crude oil per year while the capacity is 1.5m tonnes. It is located at Patenga in Chattogram.
Sources said the capacity of the proposed unit would be three times more than the existing one. A total of 30-acre land near the Eastern Refinery has already been acquired for expansion of the prevailing refinery by its second unit.
ERL, a subsidiary of BPC was incorporated under Companies' Act 1913(amended in 1994) as a Public Limited Company in 1963 with 35% EPIDC's (East Pakistan Industrial Development Corporation) shares, 30% shares held by Burmah Oil Company (BOC) and the rest 35% by private entrepreneurs. From November, 1985, BPC became the 100% share holder of the company.
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