Ashuganj Fertilizer Factory Cannot Restart for Now Due to Gas Crisis, Industries Minister Tells Parliament
Industries Minister Khandaker Abdul Muktadir has said it is not possible to resume gas supply to the Ashuganj Fertilizer Factory in Brahmanbaria for now because of the natural gas crisis. He also cited the gas demand of power plants and industrial factories as a reason.
The industries minister said this in the Jatiya Sangsad on Thursday (12 November) while replying to a supplementary question from Nadia Pathan Papon, the member of parliament elected from Brahmanbaria.
In her question, Nadia Pathan Papon said production at the Ashuganj fertilizer factory has remained closed for about 19 months. Yet the factory has the capacity to produce fertilizer worth about 3,000 crore taka a year.
She added that additional gas from newly drilled wells in Brahmanbaria is being added to the national grid. In this situation, she asked when gas supply to the Ashuganj fertilizer factory would resume.
In reply, the industries minister said that as gas supply is limited, the government is giving priority to fertilizer factories with higher production capacity and modern machinery.
However, if gas pressure increases and additional supply capacity is created, the matter of supplying gas to Ashuganj and other fertilizer factories will be considered, Industries Minister Khandaker Abdul Muktadir said.
