Energy Insecurity Deepens Amid Gas Shortage

A substantial gas supply shortage continues, creating diabolic energy insecurity in Bangladesh.

During this high summer towns and villages outside Dhaka are suffering from 8-10 hours of power load-shedding, only two of the six urea fertilizer factories are in operation, and gas supply to CNG is severely affected. Gas-using industries are suffering from a poor supply of gas. Petrobangla managed to supply only 2,610.90 MMCFD against its capacity of 3,829.00 MMCFD over 24 hours on June 29-30, 2024.

Production from our gas fields continues to deplete with no possibility of a major addition in the foreseeable future. One of the two FSRUs anchored on the shore of Moheshkhali is away in Singapore for repair after being damaged by a naval vessel during the cyclone on June 3. When the FSRU of Summit Energy returns after repair, the supply will increase to 3,150-3,200 MMCFD.

The peak demand for gas during high summer reaches 4,200-4,500 MMCFD. There is no possibility of an increase in RLNG supply before the mid to end 2026. The third FSRU of Summit may come into operation and additional RLNG may be available from Qatar, Oman, Summit, and Excelerate Energy. By then gas supply from own fields may further deplete.

The government may not have enough foreign exchange for purchasing LNG. The natural gas-based Bangladesh economy may continue to struggle. Some observers are suggesting considering natural gas and LNG as preferred interim fuels for the energy transition. Sustainable energy security in Bangladesh has run into deep uncertainty. FSRUs cannot operate on a 24/365 basis for the turbulent Bay of Bengal during monsoon.

The crisis now has deepened from an FSRU meeting unforeseen incident. The situation has been created from a lack of perspective plan and negligence in the exploration and development of its petroleum resources. Petrobangla and EMRD have also failed to start the construction of a land-based LNG terminal at Matarbari. The present actions of exploration and LNG supply increase may not bring major success before 2030.