A unit of Bangladesh’s state-owned Petrobangla has decided to cancel a shortlisting process for development of a land-based liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal at Matarbari in the southeastern region of Cox’s Bazar, it said on Wednesday.

In a statement, Rupantarita Prakritik Gas Company Ltd (RPGCL) said terminal development had been kicked off under a law to speed provision of energy.

“We will follow an open tender process in line with public procurement rules to ensure transparency,” a Petrobangla official told Reuters in response to a query on the cancellation.

The law, known as the Quick Enhancement of Electricity and Energy Supply Act, was meant to ensure uninterrupted power supply for Bangladesh but critics say it is not a transparent process.

Earlier, Bangladesh had also terminated a pact with domestic conglomerate Summit Group for a floating LNG terminal, signed under the same legislation.

Summit Group had also been in the running for the Matarbari LNG terminal in a consortium with JERA and Sumitomo Corporation.

The Matarbari project would have been Bangladesh’s first land-based terminal, with annual capacity of about 7 million tons, and provision to expand it to about 10.5 million tons.

Bangladesh now has two floating import terminals with a combined annual capacity of 7.6 million tons that supply gas to the national grid.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Ashitha Shivaprasad in Bengaluru, Emily Chow in Singapore and Ruma Paul in Dhaka; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)