Authorities have stopped the production of urea fertilizer at Jamuna Fertilizer Company Limited (JFCL) located at Tarakandi in Sarishabari upazila of Jamalpur.
Urea production stopped on Tuesday morning as the gas pressure was temporarily reduced.
JFCL sources said KPI-1, under the control of Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC), has been producing 1,700MT of urea daily since its inception.
Over the past few years, production has been reduced from 1,000MT to 1,200MT due to shortage of gas pressure and machinery defects.
In the meantime, fertilizer production at the plant has been severely disrupted as the authorities have stopped the supply of gas twice every year. The gas pressure suddenly dropped again from 2.30pm on Monday. As a result, the production of urea fertilizer at the factory was completely stopped from Tuesday morning.
According to reliable sources, BCIC recently decided to keep fertilizer production uninterrupted in Ghorashal Palash Urea Fertilizer Company. For this, the pressure of gas in the Jamuna Fertilizer Factory was reduced to ensure adequate gas supply there.
JFCL Workers' Union President Moazzem Hossain said: "The fertilizer quality of Jamuna Fertilizer Factory is better than any other factory. This factory has been meeting the demand for fertilizer in 20 districts of the northern region, including Mymensingh. We are worried that its production has stopped now."
He demanded to ensure gas supply and resume production at the earliest.
Delwar Hossain, acting general manager (administration) of the factory, said that about 42psi to 43psi gas pressure is required daily for uninterrupted production in the factory. When this pressure drops to 9psi, production is not possible.
Gas supplier Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company Ltd. said there was a shortage of gas.
