Written by The Banking Post
The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) on Wednesday approved 13 projects worth Tk 83.33 billion aimed at strengthening energy exploration, upgrading infrastructure, and supporting social development across the country.
To strengthen the state-owned energy exploration company Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration and Production Company Limited (BAPEX), ECNEC approved the procurement of a high-capacity drilling rig for the fuel exploration project at Tk 5.77 billion.
Another project, costing Tk 15.56 billion, was also approved to explore gas at five prospective wells nationwide.
Presided over by Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus, ECNEC cleared the projects, Planning Adviser Wahiduddin Mahmud told journalists after the meeting.
ECNEC has also decided to identify khas land (government-owned land) under different public agencies to ensure proper utilisation and management, the adviser added.
A four-member panel was formed for this purpose, including Land Adviser Ali Imam Majumder, Energy and Power Adviser Fouzul Kabir Khan, Housing and Public Works Adviser Adilur Rahman, and Environment Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan.
“Although the Railways, Water Development Board, Forest Department and others have a lot of khas land, much of it is not being utilised due to illegal occupation. We need to identify and reclaim government land,” the adviser said. Under the rig procurement project, BAPEX – Bangladesh’s sole public sector energy explorer – will expedite its gas and oil exploration activities nationwide. A typical 2000 HP drilling rig includes a 2000 HP draw works, multiple 1600 HP mud pumps, a mast about 45 metres high, a substructure with a rig floor height of roughly 10.5 metres, and is designed for drilling depths of 6,000 to 7,000 metres using a 5-inch drill pipe.
BAPEX will drill assessment-cum-development wells at Shahbazpur-5, Shahbazpur-7, Bhola-3, and Bhola-4, and an exploration well at Shahbazpur (North-East Zone-1).
Among the 11 other ECNEC-approved development projects, seven are new, five are revised, and one received an extension without any additional cost.
Notable approvals include the Tottho Apa: Empowerment of Women through ICT (Phase-2, 3rd revised) project under the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs, which increased in cost by Tk 578.6 million to Tk 6.61 billion; the modernisation of research labs and infrastructure development at Dhaka University of Engineering and Technology (DUET), Gazipur, at Tk 8.66 billion; the modernisation of NESCO’s electricity distribution system at Tk 11.84 billion; and the Export Competitiveness for Jobs (EC4J, 3rd revised) project, which saw its cost increase by Tk 1.59 billion to Tk 12.64 billion.
