LNG supply resumes in Chattogram
The supply of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the floating terminals in Maheshkhali of Cox’s Bazar has resumed.
LNG supply through pipelines started at 10:30 pm Friday. A maximum of 230 million cubic feet of gas has been supplied as of 10:00 am Saturday. The supply may turn normal after 12.00 pm in Chattogram.
Sources in the Bangladesh Oil, Gas and Mineral Corporation (Petrobangla) and the Gas Transmission Company Limited (GTCL) have confirmed Prothom Alo about the development.
Karnaphuli Gas Company, the gas distribution company in Chattogram, has said that consumers have started getting gas, though the pressure is still low. However, the situation is improving.
Gas pressure has been increasing gradually since the start of gas supply from the floating terminal through the pipelines. Supply increases when the gas pressure rises. Then it reaches the customers through a distributing company. Usually, a maximum of 500 million cubic feet of gas is supplied from one terminal.
Speaking to Prothom Alo over the phone this morning, Petrobangla director (operation and mines) Md Kamruzzaman said, “LNG supply in pipelines has started. The pressure is rising slowly, so the supply.”
Earlier on Friday, the gas distribution system in the eastern part of the country collapsed due to delay in commissioning the LNG terminal of US –based company Accelerate Energy after it was brought back after maintenance work. Gas supply in six districts in the eastern region - Chattogram, Cumilla, Noakhali, Feni, Lakshmipur and Narayanganj - was disrupted due to some technical flaws in the terminal. People in these districts had to suffer a lot due to this sudden disruption of gas supply without any prior notice from the distributing companies. Industrial production was also impeded by this.
Of the six districts, Cumilla, Noakhali, Feni and Lakshmipur are in the distributing zones of Bakhrabad Gas Field. The Titas Gas Distribution Company Limited (TGDCL) supplies gas in Narayanganj and the Karnaphuli Gas Distribution Company in Chattogram.
A large portion of the national grid is supplied to these districts. As Chattogram is entirely LNG-dependent, the gas supply was completely snapped there. The scenario was almost the same in the other affected districts.
Karnaphuli Gas Company managing director Md Abu told Prothom Alo this morning, “The consumers in Chattogram have started getting the supply. Gas supply at normal pressure may start from noon.”
There are two floating terminals in Maheshkhali for converting imported LNG and supplying it to the pipeline. One is the Accelerate Energy LNG Terminal and the other is the Summit Group LNG Terminal. A maximum of 850 million LNG used to be supplied in a day from these two terminals through the distributing companies. The terminals require maintenance every five years. On 1 November, the terminal of the Accelerate Energy was moved into the deep sea for maintenance.
Petrobangla sources say after the maintenance an attempt was made to re-launch the terminal Thursday night. However, it was not possible to resume the supply in the pipeline.
Meanwhile, the Summit Group LNG Terminal was also scheduled to undergo maintenance Thursday. Therefore, this terminal was also shut down yesterday. As a consequence, there was no supply of gas on Thursday. However, the situation turned into a fiasco, as the terminal could not be re-launched as of yesterday night.
According to the Petrobangla source, the daily demand of gas in the country is 3.8 billion cubic feet of gas. However, the supply was less than 2.5 billion cubic feet for the last two months, which dwindled to 2 billion cubic feet after the closure of the Accelerate Energy LNG terminal for maintenance.