Dhaka: Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) has announced plans to procure 1.30 lakh tonnes of diesel from India to meet the fuel demands in the northwestern region of the country, officials reported today. The import will be facilitated through a government-to-government agreement with India's Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL), costing an estimated Tk. 1,137 crore.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, the proposal has already received economic affairs committee approval and is now awaiting final confirmation from the Committee of the Advisers Council on Government Purchase. BPC chairman M Amin Ul Ahsan revealed that the BPC Board of Directors, in a recent meeting, suggested the import of diesel from January to December 2025. The diesel will be transported via the 131.57-kilometre cross-border India-Bangladesh Friendship Pipeline (IBFP).
The imported diesel will be distributed to the northern part of Bangladesh. Ahsan highlighted that under a 15-year agreement with India, BPC secures a 5.5 percent import premium. Although Bangladesh could potentially secure a lesser premium by importing from other countries, the direct pipeline from India reduces transport costs, making the procurement more economical compared to importing via cargo through Chattogram or Mongla ports.
The pipeline features a 5-kilometre section in India, with the remaining 126.57 kilometres running through Bangladesh, covering regions such as Panchagarh, Dinajpur, Nilphamari, and Rangpur. The diesel will be received at the Parbatipur petroleum fuel depot in Dinajpur for regional distribution.
The construction of the friendship pipeline was part of the Bangladesh-India energy cooperation, primarily aimed at importing diesel from India. Diesel is the primary petroleum product imported by Bangladesh, with annual imports of approximately 5.4 million tonnes of crude and refined petroleum products. BPC's demand for refined fuel oil is around 7.4 million tonnes, with 4.6 million tonnes being diesel, 80 percent of which is imported.
BPC is the sole state-owned fuel oil importer in Bangladesh, acquiring diesel from seven countries through government-to-government agreements, accounting for 50 percent of imported petroleum. The remaining diesel is procured through international tenders. Domestic refineries supply about 20 percent of the fuel oil, with the remaining 80 percent imported.