Gas supply was disrupted in the capital yesterday for nine hours as lightning struck the Bibiyana gas field in Habiganj bringing down the production by more than half its capacity to 360 million cubic feet.
Bibiyana supplies around 840m cubic feet of gas per day to the national grid.
Several wells at the gas field were damaged because of the lightning during a storm around 3pm. The repairing work of the wells completed around 9:40pm.
Besides household chores, gas-based power plants and industries also had to be kept shut throughout the evening.
“Production at several wells of the north pad of the gas field was suspended for nine hours. The authorities took the time for repairing the damage,” Petrobangla Chairman Hossain Monsur told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.
Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company Ltd Director Mir Moshiur Rahman said: “We were in a serious gas crisis and after the repairing and it would take three to four hours for the situation to become normal.”
Gas flow from Bibiyana takes the time to reach Dhaka.
“As a result, we had to advise power stations, CNG stations and industries to consume less gas,” added Moshiur Rahman.
Bibiyana, the country’s largest gas field, is operated by the US-based company Chevron.
Sabrina Khan, media and documentation officer of Chevron, said it was a natural accident and “we had nothing to do. We took quick action for the repair work.”
