Photo : Messenger
After a decade of maritime disputes with Myanmar, the Bangladesh government has floated the bidding offer on Sunday (March 10, 2024). Earlier, the government amended the Production Sharing Contract (PSC), hiking the gas price to attract international energy giants.
Industry insiders think this alluring offer has made the global giants interested in working in the deep sea. The government has decided in principle to award the deep-sea blocks to competent clients.
Already, the US gas exploration giant ExxonMobil officially proposed to the Energy Ministry for exploring gas and oil in the deep sea, but the government did not respond positively. Meanwhile, US’s Chevron, Russian Gazprom, and Indian ONGC expressed their interest in working in the sea.
Shaikh Jahidur Rahman, Communication Manager at Chevron, told The Daily Messenger, “Today (Sunday), the advertisement has been published and there are six months to go. We can’t comment in a day. The company will evaluate the bid documents and decide. At least, I can confirm that Chevron is interested in offshore bidding. We continue to evaluate opportunities that might be competitive for investment within Chevron’s global portfolio.”
He added, “Chevron Bangladesh continues to work in partnership with the Government of Bangladesh and Petrobangla to deliver the safe, reliable supply of affordable natural gas, which is essential to help meet the country’s growing energy demand.”
State Minister for Power, Energy, and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid told the Daily Messenger, “ExxonMobil and Chevron have expressed interest in working in the deep sea. We have floated the bid. Hopefully, they will compete in the bidding.”
Russian energy giant Gazprom is also interested in working in the sea. An official said on the condition of anonymity, “We are preparing the proposal to join the bidding.”
Energy expert Professor M Tamim Tamim told The Daily Messenger, “No one can measure gas reserves by conducting 2D surveys. The government should collect all data from the oil and gas blocks by conducting 2D and 3D surveys. If the government has the data, it can negotiate with the IOCs prudently. Since the government has no data about the block, IOCs took the decision as per their wish.”
Former BAPEX Director Mokbul E Elahi said, “We have to be careful about the price of gas. In the revised PSC, the Energy Division offers a high price of gas.”
The state minister for Power, Energy, and Mineral Resources also said that big American companies have come and many of them want to be partners of Bangladesh.
A senior official of Petrobangla said, “Tenders have been called several times to lease the deep-sea blocks, but there has been no response due to the lower price mentioned in the Production Sharing Contract (PSC). I think this time we will be able to find the actual partners.”
Earlier, the global exploration energy giants communicated with the government repeatedly, but the government was waiting for the suitable time.
Meanwhile, the government has already amended the PSC to attract international companies to oil and gas extraction. The price of the gas which is found has been increased compared to before. The revised PSC is expected to be approved by the Cabinet at the end of July.
The Bay of Bengal has been divided into 26 blocks after maritime disputes with neighboring countries Myanmar and India, 11 of which have rocks in the shallow part. There are 15 blocks in the deep sea, and 15 blocks are trying to get leased. Since 2014, Petrobangla has been trying to lease offshore blocks but has yet to succeed.
Messenger/Fameema
