Chevron signals fresh funding
A high-level delegation from Chevron Corporation called on Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Sunday, discussing the American energy major’s potential investment in Bangladesh’s energy sector, with a particular focus on natural gas.
The delegation, led by Javier La Rosa, President of Chevron’s
Base Assets and Emerging Countries division, met the Prime Minister at his office at the Bangladesh Secretariat in the morning, according to a press release issued by the PM’s Press Wing, as reported by UNB.
The talks centred on two tracks: boosting Chevron’s investment in Bangladesh’s existing, ageing gas fields, and exploring fresh opportunities in new gas fields.
The Prime Minister reportedly urged the company to step up spending on both fronts to help shore up the country’s energy security.
The meeting comes as the government pushes to lift sagging domestic gas production and draw in more investment to meet rising energy demand nationwide.
Present at the meeting were the Prime Minister’s Adviser on Finance and Planning, Dr Rashed Al Mahmud Titumir; State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Aninda Islam Amit; Chevron Bangladesh President and Managing Director Shu Xiong; and other senior officials.
Chevron’s footprint in Bangladesh
Chevron is the largest single producer of natural gas in Bangladesh, operating three onshore fields under production-sharing contracts with the government and state-run Petrobangla: Bibiyana in Habiganj (Block 12), and Jalalabad and Moulavi Bazar in Sylhet (Blocks 13 and 14). Together, the three fields have historically supplied over half of the country’s gas output, with Bibiyana alone accounting for roughly 50 percent of domestic production at peak. All gas and condensate produced is sold to Petrobangla.
Chevron’s relationship with Dhaka’s energy planners has deepened over nearly two decades.
In 2007, the company brought the Bibiyana field online, and by 2022 it had signed supplemental agreements to drill new wells in an expanded “flank” area of the field, along with amendments to the gas and condensate sales agreements for Jalalabad and Moulavi Bazar.
But the partnership has not been without friction. Last year, Chevron pressed Petrobangla over mounting unpaid gas bills – arrears that reportedly touched $240 million during the previous government’s tenure amid a dollar shortage – and briefly held back new investment as leverage to recover the dues.
Reserve estimates at Bibiyana have also fluctuated over the years; the field was once thought to be running low, but revised assessments last year still put extractable reserves at around 1.5 trillion cubic feet, enough for roughly another decade of supply at current extraction rates.
Sunday’s meeting is the latest in a string of engagements between Chevron and the Tarique Rahman government, which took office in February following the 2026 general election.
A separate Chevron delegation met the Prime Minister in April, also led by La Rosa, underscoring the company’s sustained interest in expanding its stake in Bangladesh’s gas sector even as questions persist over payment reliability and the long-term output of its mature fields.
