Staff Correspondent
State-owned Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) is implementing several mega projects worth Tk 42,000 crore, aiming to ensure smooth supply of fuel oil in the country. Implementation of BPC’s mega projects is going on in full swing, BPC officials said.
Sources said two pipelines will be constructed at 110-kilometer length from Moheshkhali deep sea to Chattogram by single point mooring (SPM) in a double pipeline project, which will ensure the supply of oil directly from the ships at Outer Anchorage of Chittagong Port through pipelines to Eastern Refinery Limited (ERL). The project cost is around Tk 5,421 crore, and will be completed by 2020.
Dhaka-Chattogram pipeline of 237 kilometres will be laid to transport white petroleum products from Chattogram to Godnail depot in a smooth, safe, faster and cost effective manner. It will be set up at a cost of Tk 2,500 crore by 2020. It has been planned to carry 27.2 lakh MT of diesel per year.
Laying of a 16 kilometre Jet A-1 pipeline from Pitolganj of Narayanganj (near Kanchan Bridge) to Kurmitola Aviation Depot (beside Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport) including pumping facilities, will be there to transport jet fuel. The pipeline project will cost Tk 228.49 crore and will be completed by 2019. Its carrying capacity is 9 lakh metric tonnes.
Due to traffic congestion, it is risky to supply jet fuel by tank lorries through Dhaka city. That is why the initiative has been taken to construct the pipeline. BPC hopes it will reduce operating and transportation costs.
Besides, BPC will set up a pipeline from Guptakhal to Shah Amanat Airport of Chattogram to transport jet fuel. Yearly carrying capacity of the pipeline will be 3 lakh metric tonnes.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi had jointly launched the 136-kilometer long Indo-Bangla pipeline construction work.
The oil pipeline will supply one million metric tonnes of high-speed diesel per year to Bangladesh. The total cost of the oil pipeline is pegged at Tk 429 crore. If the pipeline (India’s West Bengal’s Shiliguri up to Parbatipur oil depot of Bangladesh) is built, a large amount of transportation costs and oil system loss will be reduced annually. It will have a deadline to be completed by the end of December 2020, BPC officials said.
BPC Chairman, Md Shamsur Rahman told Bangladesh Post, “We are trying to complete the entire project within the stipulated timeframe. The pipeline network will help transport petroleum products in a smooth, safe, faster and cost effective manner for securing energy security in the country.” Official also said, the BPC has taken steps to modernise the supply and weighing of oil. The operational activity at all depots under the state-owned oil distribution company is going for automation, they informed. The system loss will be substantially reduced after the automation system installed in all depots. Sources said, the BPC will also take projects to implement automated payment system of prices of fuels. The corporation will collect the dues from Padma, Meghna, Jamuna and SAOCL in this financial year, said the sources. It has already collected Tk 7.5 billion (Tk 750 crore) in this fiscal year.
Despite the shortage of manpower, the BPC is increasing its service both in quality and volume, said the official. A training centre has been set up by the BPC at Joy Hills in Chattogram city to increase the skill of its officials and staff, he added.
