Arifur Rahman Rabbi
Due to a decrease in Covid-19 infections in the country, oxygen demand has been relatively low in recent days. Oxygen cylinders and concentrators, on the other hand, are about the same price as before.
According to hospital officials, both novel coronavirus infections and admissions to hospitals have been lower in the last week as of April 25 compared to the previous weeks.
Meanwhile, oxygen cylinder sellers said that the prices of oxygen cylinders and concentrators had not declined.
Atikur Rahman, a relative of a covid-19 patient, said he purchased a set of medical oxygen cylinder from Moghbazar area for around Tk 11,500.
This correspondent talked to some oxygen cylinder traders including M Abdullah Enterprise, Nayem Enterprise in Moghbazer area and Lotus Surgical, Rising Enterprise in BMA building about the demand and cost of the equipment.
According to these sellers, a Chinese-made cylinder’s price ranged from Tk 11,000 to Tk 16,000 in the first week of April. The price of a cylinder of Linde Bangladesh ranged from Tk 25,000 to Tk 30,000.
Currently, each oxygen cylinder costs around Tk 11,000 to Tk 25,000. They sell Linde oxygen cylinder sets for Tk 22,000 to Tk 25,000 and other private companies or Chinese cylinders for around Tk 10,000 to Tk 16,000.
Oxygen concentrators still cost around Tk 35,000 to Tk 45,000 each. In some cases, the price fluctuates depending on the demand and supply, they added.
While asked about the lower price they offer than the official price of Linde Bangladesh cylinders (Tk 26,522), they said that there were differences in the flow metre: “We give Chinese metres where Linde provides Japanese ones.”
The cost of oxygen refill has remained constant regardless of the demand -- around Tk 300.
The traders also said that multinational company Linde Bangladesh Ltd has been supplying around 90 per cent oxygen in Bangladesh during the pandemic period and Islam Oxygen Ltd and Spectra Oxygen Ltd. have been supplying the rest.
According to the website of Linde Bangladesh, the company is selling an oxygen cylinder set at Tk 26,522.
Saiqa Mazed, Linde Bangladesh’s general manager of human resources, said, “We have a capacity to produce around 90 tons oxygen per day. We are now giving more priority to producing medical oxygen than industrial oxygen to meet the demand.”
For the last six weeks, there has been a 40 per cent increase in the daily average consumption of medical oxygen, compared to previous months, she told The Business Post.
However, oxygen demand has been slightly low in the last two or three days as Covid-19 infections are decreasing she added, saying if the infection rate goes up again, the demand will increase.
Saiqa said Linde was also in contact with the concerned government authorities seeking an uninterrupted supply of electricity and gas for seamless production. It takes four to five hours to go back to production if the machines shut down due to a power or gas supply cut.
Directorate General of Health Services director for hospitals Farid Hossain Miah told The Business Post said that they needed 160 tons of oxygen every day in all public and private hospitals. And now we have no crises with the supply of oxygen.
“The number of our patients has been declining for the last few days. If the number of patients keeps decreasing, our oxygen demand will also decrease,” according to a directorate official.
Dhaka Medical College Hospital’s Director Brig Gen Nazmul Haque told The Business Post that they were operating a Covid-19 unit with 780 beds, where around 566 Covid patients were now admitted.
“A 20,000 cubic metre-tank used to go empty in three days, during the last few months it empties in two,” he said, adding that during the last three or four days, the demand for oxygen has been slightly low. They currently have no problem with the oxygen supply.
Meanwhile, Mugda general Hospital Director Asim Kumar Nath said the 379-bedded hospital now is a Covid-19 dedicated hospital. However, due to a decrease in corona infection, there had been 20 to 25 per cent fewer patients in the last two to three days.
They had no issue with oxygen supply right now, he added.
However, the expert said that the UK and South African variants of coronavirus had been spreading in Bangladesh during the second wave.
“These two variants are more contagious than the variants which came to the country last year. So, we are taking extra precaution and maintaining health guidelines strictly,” Asim Kumar Nath said.
