Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industries (FBCCI) President Md Jashim Uddin urged the government to strengthen Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration and Production Company Limited (BAPEX) for better gas supply in industries.
“Seventy per cent of gas is produced by BAPEX, but we don’t get enough of it. Also, out of the rest 30 per cent produced by other companies, we receive only 60 per cent,” said Jashim while addressing a seminar titled “Energy Security for Sustainable Development” at FBCCI auditorium in Dhaka on Thursday.
“We need low-cost fuel supply to sustain in the global competitive market,” he added.
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"The government should start long-term plans to meet fuel demand in Bangladesh. By maintaining the environment, we can make huge solar power systems and use coal-based power plants like USA and India to meet domestic demand,” said the FBCCI president.
He urged the government to explore gas from the Bay of Bengal as Myanmar is doing for a long time.
"We must reduce import dependency and increase domestic production of gas" Jashim added.
Presenting the keynote paper in the seminar, Dr Ijaz Hossain, professor (rtd) of BUET, called up the government to fully open up the fuel market and allow free and fair competition.
The government should facilitate the availability of alternative fuels — coal, LPG, oil, firewood, and agricultural residue — to give the industry sector a good choice of fuels, he also recommended.
Power, Energy, and Mineral Resources Affairs Adviser to Prime Minister Dr Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury Bir Bikram virtually attended the seminar as the chief guest, while Dr Ahmad Kaikaus, principal secretary to the prime minister, attended as the special guest among others.
