The first shipment of liquefied natural gas (LNG) has arrived Bangladesh from Qatar with the government expecting to start supplying it to the national grid by early May.
The floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) with 136,000 cubic metres of LNG has anchored near Cox’s Bazar’s Moheshkhali floating terminal on Tuesday, said an official of the power and energy ministry.
“The FSRU entered Bangladeshi waters just after 2pm and now is anchored some 3 km away from the Matarbari coast,” Joint Secretary Zanendra Nath Sarker of the energy and mineral resources division told Bangla Tribune.
Bangladesh first LNG import terminal, the Moheshkhali Floating LNG, is located at the Matarbari coast.
FSRU is a special type of ship used for storing and degasifying the LNG and supplying it on shore.
The ships carrying LNG to Bangladesh will transfer the consignments to this FSRU, which will supply it to the terminal after regasification.
The FSRU in Bangladesh has the capacity to hold 138,000 cubic metres and distribute up to 500 million cubic feet per day, officials had said.
Once the supply from FSRU through the Moheshkhali terminal starts, it will be added to the national grid via Anwara in Chattogram (Chittagong).
The pipeline from Moheshkali to Anwara is ready, but infrastructure at the coast is yet to be completed, said government official Sarker.
He added they expect to start supplying LNG by next month.
The energy and mineral resources division will make the formal announcement on Apr 29, when an official delegation led by Prime Minister’s Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Adviser Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury and State Minister Nasrul Hamid will visit the facility.
The state-owned oil, gas and mineral resources company Petrobangla signed a terminal-use agreement with Excelerate Energy Bangladesh Limited to set up the country’s first LNG terminal on Jul 18, 2016.
According to the deal, PetroBangla will import the LNG and Excelerate will be in charge of regasificationing at $0.49 for per unit (1,000 cubic feet). The total cost will stand at $0.56 as PetroBangla will pay all the taxes on behalf of Excelerate.
Petrobangla will get the ownership of the terminal, including the FSRU, after 15 years.
The Moheshkhali LNG terminal project was initiated in 2009, when the by the Awami League came to power, but could not move further with it.
After assuming office for a straight second term in 2014, the administration made it one of its top priorities.
Construction of several other floating and land-based LNG terminals in Moheshkhali, Khulna and Patuakhali’s Payra is under way.
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