Gas crisis ‘legacy of past govt’, says Zahed

Recent gas outage across in the country is a “legacy of the past government”, Prime Minister’s Information Adviser Zahed Ur Rahman has said.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, he said the government acknowledges the public’s suffering and is working to resolve the crisis.

However, it will take at least two years to fully resolve the shortage, Zahed said at a discussion marking Nazrul Year at the Shilpacharya Zainul Abedin Auditorium of Mymensingh District Council.

Asked about opposition protests over the gas shortage, Zahed said people were “indeed suffering”, adding that the prime minister had personally expressed regret.

“The people’s suffering is real. But it is not right to blame us for this,” he said, adding that people would not accept attempts to assign blame without justification.

Zahed described the shortage as a cumulative problem that had built up over years. Even with two plants operating, gas supply remains about 1 billion cubic feet a day short of demand, he said.

The government is working to bring Bhola’s gas into the national grid and increase LNG imports, while also pursuing onshore gas exploration, he said. Surveys suggest Bang-ladesh has 40-50 trillion cubic feet of gas reserves onshore, Zahed said.

Annual gas demand currently stands at 1.3-1.4 trillion cubic feet, he added.