The government on Thursday approved in principle a Master Sale and Purchase Agreement (MSPA) to import Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) from the spot market to meet the country’s growing energy demand.
The MSPA will be signed between the state-run Petrobangla and shortlisted companies.
The approval came at the meeting of the Advisers Council Committee on Economic Affairs held at the Cabinet Division with Finance Adviser Salehuddin Ahmed in the chair.
According to meeting sources, Bangladesh imports LNG both through long-term contracts and the spot market to ensure a steady gas supply. The existing MSPA with 23 companies, set to expire next month, facilitated previous LNG imports through bid invitations.
To continue procurement, 27 companies were shortlisted for new MSPAs, with 25 firms confirming their participation by February 13.
The proposal for signing agreements under PPA-2006 and PPR-2008 was submitted for approval, aiming to commence procurement by late February or early March.
The 25 approved companies include SEFE Marketing & Trading, Vitol Asia, Gunvor Singapore, Sinochem International Oil, Unipec Singapore, Aramco Trading Singapore, BP Singapore, Trafigura, Glencore, Emirates National Oil Co, and PetroChina International Singapore.
The meeting also approved a proposal in principle for further amending the Public Procurement Act, 2006 (PPA 2006) after the Implementation, Monitoring and Evaluation Division (IMED) placed it in the meeting.
Bangladesh to import 50,000 tonnes of rice from India
On Thursday, the Advisers Council Committee on Government Purchase gave nod to a proposal for importing 50,000 tonnes of non-Basmati parboiled rice from India as part of its efforts to stabilise heated up food market.
This time, the rate of per kg rice will be Tk 53.02, totaling Tk 265.07 crore.
Earlier, the committee approved rice imports from India, Pakistan, Vietnam, and Singapore. This included 100,000 tonnes from India in two phases, 50,000 tonnes each from Pakistan and Singapore, and 100,000 tonnes from Vietnam.
Fertiliser storage facilities being built in 4 dists
The committee also approved the construction of four buffer warehouses for fertiliser storage in Manikganj, Munshiganj, Jashore, and Narail at a cost of Tk 237.63 crore.
Under the “Fertiliser Storage and Distribution Facility Development” project, the Industries Ministry proposed two separate plans for building warehouses in these districts.
For the Manikganj and Munshiganj warehouses, a public tender was issued, with three companies submitting bids. After evaluation, National Development Engineers Ltd. (NDE), Dhaka, was awarded the contract for Tk 120 crore.
These steel-structured buffer warehouses will each have a 15,000-metric-tonne capacity.
Similarly, for the Jashore and Narail warehouses, AIL and SCL Faridpur jointly won the contract following a competitive bidding process.
