Govt to import 1.43m tonnes of diesel, furnace oil for July-Dec

FE Team | Published: August 17, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00

The government is going to import some 1.436 million tonnes of refined gas oil (diesel) and furnace oil from eight international petroleum companies for the second half (July-December) of the current year against the country's total demand for 2.270 million tonnes during the period, reports UNB.
Of the planned import, the gas oil is 1.016 million tonnes while the furnace oil is 420,000 tonnes.
According to sources at the state-owned Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC), among the eight fuel companies, 450,000 tonnes gas oil will be imported from KPC of Kuwait.
The Petco of Malaysia will supply total 320,000 tonnes of refined petroleum of which 200,000 tonnes are gas oil and the rest 120,000 tonnes furnace oil.
The BPC's 116,000 tonnes of refined petroleum will come from PNOC of the Philippines of which 96,000 tonnes are gas oil and 20,000 tonnes furnace oil.
Some 190,000 tonnes of refined petroleum will be coming from ENOC of the UAE, of which 90,000 tonnes are gas oil and the rest 100,000 tonnes furnace oil. The Petrochina of China will supply a total of 130,000 tonnes of petroleum fuel of which 90,000 tonnes are gas oil and 40,000 tonnes furnace oil.
Vietnam's Petrolimex will provide a total of 110,000 tonnes of refined petroleum of which gas oil is 30,000 tonnes and furnace oil 80,000 tonnes.
UNIPEC of China will supply a total of 80,000 tonnes of refined petroleum of which gas oil is 60,000 tonnes and furnace oil 80,000 tonnes. Besides, some 40,000 tonnes of furnace oil will come from Bhumi Siak of Indonesia.
For the import, the premium was proposed to be fixed at US$ 4.80 per barrel of diesel and $ 34 per tonne of furnace oil, down from $35 per tonne for first half (January-June).
The BPC reviews every six months its rate of premium prior to its petroleum import. The premium includes transportation, insurance and other costs excluding the fuel price.
The fuel price is normally fixed on the basis of a three days' average price on international market at the time when it places order to the petroleum supplying company. It was observed that the BPC's import of gas oil and furnace oil would take a declining trend in the second half of the current calendar year.
During the last six-month period from January to June, the country's petroleum import (gas oil and furnace oil was 2.030 million in which gas oil was 1.51 million tonnes while furnace oil was 520,000 tonnes and the two items of petroleum import were proposed to be 1.436 million tonnes, less by 594,000 tonnes from the first half import.
Contacted, BPC director (operation & planning) Mosleh Uddin told the news agency that there are two main reasons behind the decline in import of two main items of petroleum fuel.
He said the demand for gas oil normally takes a lower trend in the second half of the year as there is no big requirement for irrigation pump operation in this period. Secondly, the overall improvement in generation has a big impact on diesel consumption by the irrigation pumps.
"Now a large number of pumps operate with electricity which earlier used diesel," said the BPC director.
He further said the BPC takes a conservative outlook towards the import of petroleum fuel in the second half of the year as there is no pressure for meeting the irrigation demand.
Official sources said the BPC has already sent its import proposal to the Cabinet Committee on Purchases through the ministry of power, energy and mineral resources for approval.