The government is going to import 77,000 tons (578,420 barrels) of diesel from India through rail wagon to meet the domestic demand for a period of May-December this year. Bangladesh has to spend about Tk 4.10 billion to import the bulk of diesel, said Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) officials. Sources said the wagons will reach Parbatipur oil depot in Bangladesh from Shiliguri terminal. The government is expected to save money by importing diesel through a pipeline from Shiliguri in India instead of traditional sources.
Traditionally, diesel is imported through the Chittagong port and then is taken to Daulatpur in Khulna in oil tankers. From there, it is taken to Parbatipur by rail wagons. Indian state-owned Numaligor Refinery Limited (NRL) will supply the fuel from its Shiliguri marketing terminal through 35 wagons. Each wagon will carry 22,000 tons of diesel. According to official sources at the Energy Division, the state-owned Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) has already completed negotiation with the Indian authorities to this end.
The price of each barrel of diesel was fixed at $79.690 on the basis of standard operative procedure (SOP) while the premium of each barrel was set at $5.50. The price was estimated as per Plutts’ reference price of diesel on March 26, 2018 in the international market. The dollar rate was estimated at Tk 83.50. Officials said the diesel is being imported from India as part of the government’s 15-year deal under which a cross-border pipeline is being built from Numaligor refinery in the Indian state of Assam to Parbatipur oil depot, located in the north-western bordering area of Dinajpur in Bangladesh. Of the 130km cross-border pipeline, named as ‘Indo-Bangla Friendship Pipeline’, some 125km is located in Bangladesh side while only 5km in Indian side. Luis Tiant Authentic Jersey