Gas crisis continues even as temperature rises

Gas crisis in the capital remains unresolved even as winter has given way to warmer weather. Officials are saying the main cause of the shortage is surplus demand. Excessive gas shortage is found in areas such as Khilgaon, Mirpur 11, Mirpur 12, Mirpur 6, Badda, Rampura, Lalbagh, Hajaribagh and Alubazar, Old Dhaka. Panthapath resident Sinthosi Rahman said: “Gas remains out of supply from 11am and returns at 2pm. This hampers cooking during peak hours, especially during lunch preparation. Gas flow returns to normal levels in the afternoon.” She further added: “I have been living here for four years and this is the first time I am facing such a problem.” Similar complaints came from Banasree D block resident Shova. Sometimes gas supply is so low, people have to rely on food from hotels. Even in the afternoons as gas levels return to normal, it is too low to cook anything. The temperature of water decreases in winter, and hence the demand for gas increases by 25% during this time. The supply is impeded due to condensation in the pipelines. Despite the weather getting warmer in March, gas is still in short supply, unlike before. Meanwhile, Titas Gas has restricted gas supply to the Jamuna Fertilizer Factory in Jamalpur since March 8. Titas sent a letter to Jamuna, saying: “To ensure adequate gas usage for electricity production as the irrigation season approaches, and to combat the acute lack of gas in the country's gas-centric industries, the decision was made to cut gas supply to Jamuna Fertilizer Factory.” Since capping the gas supply to Jamuna, 60 million cubic feet of gas previously supplied to the factory is being added to the pipeline. Despite this measure, Titas Gas says it faces a shortage of around 300 million cft of gas. Mir Moshiur Rahman, managing director of Titas, said: “The demand for gas cannot be met, so it is being rationed. “The demand in areas under Titas stands to around 2 billion cft. But this is never met fully and a shortage of 300 million cft always remains.” But Moshiur expects the situation to be under control from May. He said: “As the import of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) begins from April, the situation will start improving from May. “At present around 300 million cft of gas is being supplied from Dhaka to Chittagong. Once we start importing LNG, there will be no need to supply to Chittagong. As a result, this gas will be sent to Titas pipelines and the gas crisis will decrease significantly.” According to Petrobangla sources, the gas supply will first increase to 300 million cft and gradually increase to 500 million, following the import. This article was first published on banglatribune.com