Chittagong Urea Fertilizer Limited (CUFL), a state-owned urea fertilizer company, suspended its production following a fire incident on Tuesday morning.
The fire broke out in the reformer pipe of the ammonia plant at the factory's southern end around 9:30am, confirmed Pradeep Kumar Nath, the factory's additional chief chemist.
“The fire was caused following a mechanical glitch,” Pradeep Kumar added.
According to factory officials, the fire has been extinguished in a rigorous effort of half an hour.
Jahedul Islam, Anwara Fire Service unit official said: “A firefighting unit went to the spot upon receiving the news. However, CUFL's own two fire trucks, assisted by factory workers, were able to extinguish the fire.”
However, the factory's production has been halted.
CUFL Deputy Manager (Security) Md Mahmudur Rahman said: “Production has been suspended temporarily. However, we hope to resume soon after damage inspection and repair work.”
An investigation committee has been formed to figure out the extent of the damage, said the official.
In 1987, with technical assistance from Japan, CUFL was founded in the Rangadia area of Anwara upazila in Chittagong on the south bank of the Karnaphuli River.
The factory can generate 1,000 tons of ammonia and 1,200 tons of urea per day if there is uninterrupted gas supply.
A total of 47 million cubic feet of gas per day is required for full-scale production.