Although the Sylhet-10 well located in Joyintapur in Sylhet district is ready for gas extraction, it is not possible to extract gas from the well due to the lack of a pipeline. However, gas from the Sylhet-10 well may be available by February. It is expected that 20 to 25 million cubic feet of gas can be produced from this well daily.

The work of laying a 6-inch diameter pipeline from the well to Haripur is underway. According to sources from Sylhet Gas Field Company Limited (SGFCL), the pipeline construction work is in its final stages.

Petrobangla Chairman Janendra Nath Sarkar told Barta24.com, we had made efforts to complete the pipeline construction work by December. The work has been delayed due to some complications in the Roads and Highways Department (R&HD). About three kilometers of pipeline are left, we have instructed to complete it within a month. A Petrobangla team will visit Sylhet soon. If necessary, a quick solution will be found by sitting with the R&HD.

The well is coming into production at a time when summer, Ramadan and the irrigation season are coming together. This news is considered a great relief in the face of the gas crisis. The drilling of the well was completed in November 2023, and 3 layers of gas were found in the well along with oil. The layers are located at depths of 2460 to 2475 meters, 2540 to 2576 meters and 3300 meters. The Division of Energy and Mineral Resources expects that the potential reserves of gas could be 43.6 to 106 billion cubic feet.

The drilling of Well No. 10 in Sylhet was done with the Gas Development Fund and Sylhet Gas Fields Limited's own funding. For this, an agreement was signed with Sinopec International Petroleum Service Corporation, China, on September 11, 2022. SGFCL has confirmed the presence of gas as well as oil in the well. Another well (Sylhet-10X) is under drilling next to that well. The drilling of that well will be completed by June 2026. It is expected to produce 45 to 50 million cubic feet of gas per day.

The oil location of the Sylhet-10 well has been identified at a depth of 1,397-1,445 meters. On the first day, 70 barrels of oil were produced in 2 hours. The well has been closed for now. A consultancy firm has been appointed to confirm the storage. That firm has also already submitted a report. The audit of that report is underway, said Petrobangla Chairman Janendra Nath Sarkar.

In response to a question, the Petrobangla Chairman told Barta24.com that the quality of the oil is of superior quality. We sent the oil obtained from Sylhet-10 to BUET and Eastern Refinery, and they reported that it was of excellent quality.

At one time, 2,800 million cubic feet of gas was obtained daily from domestic gas fields. Only 1930 million cubic feet were produced on December 23. The production of domestic gas fields is decreasing every day. Petrobangla estimates that the country's gas demand will exceed 4500 million in the 2026-27 fiscal year. Although some want to say that the actual demand for gas is now over 4500.

According to Petrobangla sources, the average price of gas purchased from the state-owned Sylhet Gas Field Company Limited at a rate of 1 taka, from Bangladesh Gas Field Company at a rate of 1.25 taka, from Bapex at a rate of 4 taka, and from multinational companies Chevron Bangladesh and Tallo stands at 6.07 taka per cubic meter. Gas is available from these domestic sources at a rate of approximately 2000 million cubic feet per day. On the other hand, 900 million gas is being supplied from LNG imports. After one-third of the imports, the average price has increased from 6.06 taka to 24.38 taka (2023-24 fiscal year). The addition of 20 to 25 million cubic meters of gas daily from the most affordable source (1 taka per cubic meter) is certainly good news.

Rosatom has rejected the news published and circulated in the media regarding illegal financial transactions in the Rooppur nuclear power project, calling it provocative. Rosatom has said that it is ready to approach the court to protect its own reputation and interests.

This claim was made in a statement by Rosatom on Tuesday (December 24).

The statement said that Rosatom is committed to ensuring open working methods, anti-corruption policies and transparency in procurement procedures in all its projects. Transparency in business processes is regularly ensured through external audits.

It also said that we consider the untrue information published and circulated in the media as an attempt to tarnish the Rooppur nuclear power project. This project is being implemented in the interest of solving the power shortage problem in Bangladesh and the welfare of the people.

It is worth noting that according to the plan, the first unit (1200 MW) of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant was supposed to be produced in 2023 and the second unit (1200 MW) in 2024. But the production date was postponed to December this year due to the substation and transmission line not being ready. Then, since the line was not ready, it could not go into production before March.

This most expensive project in the country's history is being financed by Russia. Russia has financed Tk. 93 thousand crore in this project worth Tk. 1 lakh 13 thousand crore.

There are 449 nuclear power plants in 30 countries of the world. The amount of electricity generated from them is about 12 percent of the total electricity generated. 65 more nuclear power plants are under construction in 14 countries. By 2025, the process of setting up 173 nuclear power plants is underway in 27 countries. Of these, 30 nuclear power plants are being built in new countries in the nuclear world, including Bangladesh. The most advantageous aspect of nuclear power is that its price will not fluctuate for 60 years. It is possible to get uninterrupted electricity for 60 years at the same price.

After a month and a half, the country's foreign exchange reserves have again reached 20 billion dollars.

Bangladesh Bank Spokesperson and Executive Director Husne Ara Shikha said this on Monday (December 23).

According to the latest data from the central bank, as of the 22nd of this month, the country's reserves are now 20 billion dollars according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) accounting system BPM-6.

Earlier, the foreign exchange reserves were 20 billion dollars on November 6. However, they gradually started decreasing and fell below 19 billion dollars in the first week of December.

In recent weeks, the price of the dollar started increasing due to the increase in imports. Banks had to spend a maximum of Tk. 127.70 to buy a dollar of remittances. The amount of dollars increased due to the high remittance flow. This helped banks relax restrictions on opening new LCs (letters of credit).

According to the central bank, imports grew by 1 percent from July to October of the current fiscal year, while the growth was negative 10 percent in the last fiscal year. It is worth noting that in the first 21 days of this December, remittances of 200 crore 72 lakh 30 thousand US dollars came into the country. And in the same period last November and October, remittances came in at 157 crore 50 lakh and 157 crore 29 lakh dollars respectively. The remittance flow increased in the first three weeks of December compared to October and November. 

Finance Adviser Dr. Salehuddin Ahmed said that despite the International Monetary Fund (IMF) making various alarming statements, the country’s economic situation is not that bad, but there are challenges.

He said this while talking to reporters at the Secretariat on Thursday (December 19).

The adviser told reporters that despite your IMF delegation making various alarming statements, the country’s economic situation is not that bad, but there are challenges.

Earlier, at a press conference, IMF delegation chief Chris Papageorgiou, who is visiting Bangladesh, said that the economic picture of Bangladesh is not very promising. Inflation has not been under control for a long time, which is much higher than the IMF’s assumption.

He expressed concern over the continuous increase in food prices in the Bangladesh market. For this, the organization has advised the interim government to take effective initiatives to reduce commodity prices.

At the same time, Economic Adviser Dr. Salehuddin Ahmed said that no money will be allocated to pay wages to Beximco Group workers.

He said, it has already been decided that no money will be given to pay the wages of the group's workers. He further said, earlier, money was given to the wages of the Beximco Group workers. That money has also been transferred to the workers' bank accounts. If it was not given, they would have blocked the roads.

Earlier, the companies in the Beximco Industrial Park were laid off due to lack of orders and sufficient loan defaults in the name of the company in the bank.

Meanwhile, Energy and Power Adviser Fawzul Kabir Khan said that the government will approve new gas connections for industrial plants if they agree to pay a bill equal to the cost of LNG import.