Snapshot:Power Sector Allocation Jumps 13.7% to Tk 90B

Power Sector Allocation Jumps 13.7% to Tk 90B

The embattled power sector is getting Tk 89.85 billion in the next fiscal, 13.74 percent up from 2013FY’s Tk 79 billion, even though it slid to second-highest priority area of the government after transports sector.

This allocation would be 13.64 percent of total size of the annual development plan of Tk 739.68 billion for upcoming 2013-14FY that was okayed by the Planning Commission.

Transport sector, however, witnessed the highest allocations of Tk 147.37 billion or 22.38 percent of total ADP outlay, thanks to special allocations for constructing Padma bridge with own resources.

Of the allocations for power sector, Tk 4.50 billion will come from domestic resources, while project assistance would be Tk 35.34 billion.

This allocation also includes an amount of Tk 5.607 billion of block allocations.

There will be a total of 62 approved projects, of which 54 are allotted for ongoing ones, but funding for the rest eight would come from block allocations.

There will also be 22 unapproved projects, the fate of which will depend on availability of foreign assistance.

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JS Panel For Identifying Persons Behind Irregularities Fuel Carrying

A parliamentary watchdog asked the Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) to identify the officials responsible for the government revenue loss of Tk 19,93,13,519 through irregularities in transporting petroleum products.

At its 118th meeting in Parliament, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Accounts said it wants to know about the steps taken by the authorities to identify those responsible for the irregularities as well as to realize the revenue loss through the Comptroller Auditor General (CAG) in two months’ time.

A loss of Tk 13,40,27,491 was reported during the Jet A-1 fuel transport from Godainol depot to Kurmitola Aviation depot by BPC while Tk 6,52,865,028 in another fuel transport without tender by Meghna Petroleum Ltd, according to audit objections.

The Standing Committee also sought explanation why the BPC has resumed petroleum transport on the route from Chittagong via Godainol to Baghabari, instead of the direct route between Chittagong and Baghabari.

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PGCL Starts Selling Application Forms

Paschimanchal Gas Company Limited (PGCL) has started selling application forms for gas connections to households in Rajshahi city.

The forms are being sold for Tk 100 in the city’s Shaheb Bazar Branch of Agrani Bank.

Tofail Ahmed, in-charge of Rajshahi PGCL office, said a gas connection would be provided one month after submission of the application followed by its scrutiny and completion of other official processes.

Some dwellers complained that applicants have to wait in queues for hours as only one bank has been chosen to sell the forms.

About the complaint, Tofail said it has been done to protect the applicants from frauds.

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Four Including Girl Suffer Burns s Gas Cylinder Leaks

A nine-year-old girl suffered severe burns while her father and two others minor injuries after compressed natural gas leaking from an auto-rickshaw cylinder caught fire from a tea stall’s kerosene stove in the capital’s Mohammadpur.

The child Sumi Akhter; her father Md Asif, 50, the tea stall owner; the vehicle driver Helal Uddin, 42; and a mechanic working on the vehicle Mostofa Ashrafi were admitted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH).

Sumi, suffering some 20 percent burns to her face and hands and losing large portions of her hair, was later shifted to the Burn and Plastic Surgery Unit, said DMCH sources.

Mostofa was repairing the cylinder in a garage a few feet away from the tea stall in Geneva Camp while Sumi, a class-II student, had come to get some tea for her mother when the flames erupted.

“The burner set alight pressurized gas leaking from the cylinder, leaving the four injured and the stall partially burnt,” said Sub-inspector Tofazzal Hossain of Mohammadpur Police Station.

“The locals, however, doused the flame before fire fighters reached the spot and also rushed the injured to the hospital,” he said.

Mostofa said the fire took place while he was repairing a pipeline of the cylinder.

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PM Orders Activating Research Council to Meet Power Crisis

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina directed the concerned to activate the Bangladesh Power and Energy Research Council (BPERC), aiming to help mitigate the energy crisis through finding innovative ideas and activities.

The PM made the directives to State Minister for Power and Energy Muhammad Enamul Haque, a senior official said.

The order came at the cabinet committee meeting in the secretariat in Dhaka on Monday.

The Premier asked the state minister to start functioning BPERC before ratifying a law as it requires time, Economic Relations Division Secretary Md Abul Kalam Azad, who is also designed to form the council, told daily sun on Monday.

The premier also asked the state minister for power to appoint experts to start the council.

He said the government will prepare law for running the BPERC in coming days.

Later, a proposal will be placed at the Cabinet Division to enact a law styled “Bangladesh Power and Energy Research Council Act”.

Earlier, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina approved a proposal to form the research council, another official said.

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Dr Salim Reappointed As BERC Member

Dr Salim Mahmud has been reappointed as a member of the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (Berc) for another three-year term. The appointment will be effective from May 9, 2013.

Dr Salim, an expert of upstream and downstream policy of energy sector, and its regulatory and legal affairs, he has been working at the Berc since May 2010, said a press release.

He is also a teacher of Dhaka University’s law department. He has a PhD on “Energy Law and Policy” from the Center for Energy, Petroleum and Mineral and Law Policy at Dandee University, UK.

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REB to Strengthen 30 Substations

Rural Electrification Board (REB) is going to strengthen 30 substations under 19 Palli Biddyut Samities (PBSs) in four divisions at an estimated cost of $18.2 million.

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) will finance the project to strengthen the 30 existing 30/11kv substations to 10mva from 5mva in Rajshahi, Rangpur, Khulna and Barisal divisions in the next fiscal year.

The power division is likely to award M/s EnergyPac Consortium as the lowest bidder. It quoted 26.30 percent lowest rates while the nearest bidder CCC, China quoted 12.70 percent, the highest prices.

EnergyPac Consortium has sought $13.413 million while the nearest contestant has sought $20.51 million.

The power division will place a proposal before the cabinet committee on purchase to allow the lowest bidder do the job, an official said.

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Govt Urged Not to Sign PSC With IOCs

National Committee to Protect Oil, Gas, Mineral Resources, Power and Ports urged the government to refrain from signing Production Sharing Contracts with the international oil companies to extract gas from the offshore gas fields according to the PSC-2012.

The convener of the national committee Sheikh Muhammad Shaheedullah and member secretary Anu Muhammad at a press statement said that the proposed deals would destroy the possibility of strengthening the energy security of the country and deepen the energy crisis.

The government has taken initiative to sign deals with the IOCs which would be unequal and only benefit the foreign companies, the committee leaders said.

The government had amended the Model PSC-2012 by which the price of extracted gas which would be purchased by the government in foreign currency has been increased 50 per cent according to the demand of the companies. This would be contrary to the national interests, the national committee leaders said.

Moreover, the foreign companies would be able to sell the extracted gas to the third party.

The committee leaders called on the government to refrain from signing such deals when the country was facing serious political crisis.

They called on the government to implement the seven-point demands of the national committee and take initiatives for strengthening the Petrobangla and BAPEX.

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BD, Belarus to Implement Oil, Light Industries Projects

Belarus and Bangladesh are planning to implement a number of joint projects in the oil, light and other industries.

Belarusian Telegraph Agency (BelTA) was informed of it by the Belarusian diplomatic mission through a press release.

According to the press release, the projects were discussed at a meeting between Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Belarus to Russia Igor Petrishenko and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh to Russia and Belarus Saiful Hoque.

The parties discussed in details the practical implementation of the agreements reached during the visit of Prime Minister of Belarus Mikhail Myasnikovich to Bangladesh in November 2012.

In this context, the parties also considered arranging a visit of a high-level delegation of Bangladesh to Belarus.

“The parties also discussed the development of trade and economic cooperation, the implementation of a number of joint projects in the oil, light and other industries, and considered other topics of mutual interest,” the press release added.