Gas reserves to be depleted in less than 5 years: Report

Bangladesh's proven natural gas reserves might be depleted in less than five years if production continues at its current rate, a new study estimates.

According to the report, titled 'Bangladesh at an Energy Crossroads', domestic gas supplies are expected to fall 25 per cent by 2025 as the current rising trend of consumption is predicted to continue.

Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI), a US-based independent organisation, released the report on Saturday.

Bangladesh is Asia's eighth-largest natural gas producer and gas is currently the primary source of energy in the country. However, future reliance on gas on gas comes with critical climate, environmental, health, and economic costs, said the report.

The report also adds that Bangladesh continues to consume more natural gas than it can produce, so it is increasingly relying on imported LNG to bridge this gap.

Currently, over 22 per cent of Bangladesh's gas use comes from LNG.

In 2020, Bangladesh sourced over 4.3 million tonnes of LNG imports, and as gas demand is expected to rise, LNG imports are expected to increase 50-fold between 2019 and 2040.

It has further voiced support but is not yet a participant in a groundbreaking Global Methane Pledge in 2021 at the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate.

The currently planned expansions into LNG could be at odds with these national and international commitments.

LNG is a major source of methane, which has 84-times greater global warming potential compared to CO2 over a 20-year timeframe.

The report shows that by 2040, emissions affiliated with the production and transport of LNG could make up the bulk 95 per cent of the emissions Bangladesh is responsible for.

This is driven by the shift away from domestic production and toward gas imports. Also, if emissions are not managed properly along the gas value chain, methane can be just as bad, if not worse, than coal for its climate impact.

Moreover, planned LNG expansion poses several health risks. Across the value chain, there are risks to burning gas because of the toxins it emits into the atmosphere. Children and residents living close to gas infrastructure are some of the most at risk of health problems from LNG.

Earlier, the Paris Climate Agreement called on governments to rise to the challenge of curbing climate change. Bangladesh - one of the many countries that ratified the Paris Agreement - is in an especially challenging position given its rapid growth, extreme vulnerability to climate impacts, and interrelated climate and sustainable development goals.