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Bangladesh currently has fuel reserves sufficient to meet domestic demand for about one and a half months, while the government plans to raise the reserve capacity to three months in the near term and eventually to six months, State Minister for Planning Zunaid Abdur Rahim Saki said.
He made the remarks while briefing journalists after a meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) at the Planning Ministry in Agargaon on Wednesday.
“At present, we have fuel reserves for about one and a half months. We will increase this to three months soon, and our long-term plan is to build reserves sufficient for six months,” the state minister said.
Saki also said a technical problem involving a boiler at a floating liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in Maheshkhali had recently disrupted gas supply but the issue had been resolved.
He said Bangladesh still faced a gap between gas and power supply and growing demand, prompting the government to focus on increasing domestic gas production and expanding renewable energy.
“We are working to overcome the power shortage. The current crisis is temporary and efforts are underway to resolve it,” he said.
Saki said Bangladesh was importing gas to meet immediate demand, but stressed that imports alone would not be sufficient. The country would also need additional LNG infrastructure and terminals, the development of which would require time.
He said the government was working on a longer-term strategy to strengthen energy security, improve the power system and diversify the country’s energy sources.