The commissioning of a new gas compressor station in Brahmanbaria’s Ashuganj has been delayed as the officials of its contractor firm expressed concerns in coming to Bangladesh because of political unrest.
“The station is ready for commission since last one month. But the officials of Hyundai Engineering Company Ltd have left the country in fear of ongoing political violence,” Jameel Ahmed Aleem, managing director of Gas Transmission Company Limited (GTCL) told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.
“They are supposed to come tomorrow [today] but still they said they have been observing the situation to be ensured of a secured visit here,” he said.
The project was completed in last November, ahead of its scheduled deadline of July this year, and was now waiting for commissioning. If the station could be commissioned this month, it would have helped mitigate the present gas crisis.
The GTCL constructed the compressor station to enhance gas pressure.
“The compressors will raise gas supply in Ashuganj line to 1,500 cubic feet from 1,200 cubic feet, and in Elenga from 300 cubic feet to 500 cubic feet,” Amzad Hossain Majumder, project director for the installation of compressor stations at Ashuganj and Elenga, told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.
“Hopefully the new compressor in Ashuganj will improve gas pressure significantly, particularly in the industrial areas.” he said.
“Another compressor is expected to be in operation in Tangail’s Elenga in April this year,” Amzad claimed.
Officials said the process had been delayed after a compressor for Ashuganj had earlier been dropped in the river Meghna while being unloaded from a barge at the Ashuganj launch terminal, causing extensive damages to the compressor.
For this, the authorities blamed “the negligence” and “the lack of proper care” of the contracting firm.
The compressor station of Elenga was also facing delay in commission for the negligence of contractor firm, an official of the GTCL said.
Earlier, the government signed agreements with Hyundai Engineering Company Ltd of South Korea to set up the two compressors.
The Tk8.54bn project is being funded jointly by the government and the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
The project to install two gas compressors was revised three times since 2006. The biddings for the works were cancelled twice.
As the gas supply was hit by the weakness in pressure recently, the government gave special care to expedite the installation work of the Ashuganj compressor, said official sources.
