Preparation is on stream to award a liquefied natural gas (LNG)-supply contract to a truant foreign firm that had previously left Bangladesh without completing a contracted drilling job, sources say, stoking fresh concerns.
Energy-industry insiders say the move towards deal-making with Socar, an Azerbaijani company, has triggered unease, given the firm's controversial track record in the country's oil and gas industry.
State-run Petrobangla is currently negotiating with Socar to select it, without a competitive tender, for LNG supply to Bangladesh for the first time, a senior Petrobangla official said.
Critics fear the decision could expose the country to renewed contractual and supply risks amid an already-strained gas market.
Socar earlier won a three-well drilling contract from Petrobangla's subsidiary, Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration Company (BAPEX), but allegedly completed only one-third of the works before leaving the country.
