Home ›› 06 Apr 2022 ›› Editorial
Shortage of gas production leading to disruption in supply or low pressure at customers’ level is nothing new in this country. However, the ongoing gas crisis seems to have surpassed all such previous records in terms of its effect on the industrial sector, let alone the problems facing the household users in the holy month of Ramadan. The Business Post reported on Tuesday that the gas production shortage has exasperated the country’s industrial sector, mostly the textile and apparel, as yarn manufacturers are failing to meet the delivery target on time, affecting the entire production schedule to a large extent. The spinning mills and the dyeing and washing mills face trouble because of low gas supply.
The situation also affects the country’s electricity generation, as most of our 126 power plants are run by natural gas. The total power generation capacity through gas is 11,000 megawatt. The gas-fired power plants are not getting enough gas due to declining production in the Bibiyana Gas Field. The Power Development Board (PDB) is apprehending a decline in electricity generation leading to load-shedding. In the wake of the gas shortage, the city dwellers bore its brunt for the second consecutive day on Monday. Besides, around 1,700-megawatt electricity is generated by the captive power plants for the textile industries run by natural gas, according to the Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA).
In many places in Dhaka, domestic users are facing difficulty in maintaining cooking schedule in line with the holy months of Ramadan. Gas is burning very slowly during the morning while there was no gas in the afternoon in many places. The residents are facing problems in preparing Iftar items at home. “It was quite a mess,” one Dhaka resident said.
Petrobangla attributed the gas shortage to the ongoing repair work at the Bibiyana Gas Field in Sylhet, which is operated by Chevron, an American gas exploration company. The Bibiyana Gas Field is one of the largest gas fields in Bangladesh. There are 26 gas wells there. The daily production capacity of the gas field is 1,200 million cubic feet (cft). The day before the crisis began, Bibiyana produced about 1,186 million cubic feet of gas, but Petrobangla sources said that 886 million cubic feet of gas was extracted on Monday. Gas production has dropped by about 400 million cubic feet. Petrobangla said the emergency workover of Bibiyana Gas Field is underway. As a result, gas extraction from six wells had been stopped since last Saturday night. Petrobangla Chairman Nazmul Ahsan said a gas well was launched on Sunday while three more are in the pipeline to go into production by Monday evening. This will reduce the existing gas crisis to some extent. Nasrul Hamid, state minister for power, energy and mineral resources, told the parliament that the country needs around 3,700 million cubic feet of gas per day while there is a supply of around 3,160 million cubic feet including imported LNG. That means gas shortage stands at around 540 million cubic
feet per day.
The present crisis may be eased to some extent within a few days. The people and industries may also accept the occasional disruptions in gas supply and learn to live with it. But the policymakers need to think beyond it. The Russia-Ukraine war has shown us how vulnerable we are to external factors. The ongoing gas production may not remain at the same level unless we can explore new gas fields. People in Sri Lanka are standing in long queues for hours to get LNG. They fell into this crisis as their government failed to foresee the situation. We must have a clear roadmap for achieving energy security for our future. Otherwise, we may face the same future that Sri Lanka is facing now.
