Referring to the energy policy of Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh's five-time elected Prime Minister, the claim that the country was intentionally made import-dependent in the energy sector during the past government's tenure is a baseless and politically motivated narrative. During that period, alongside boosting exploration and extraction from domestic sources, timely infrastructure was established in advance to meet incremental demand. This was by no means 'import dependence', but rather a well-planned step toward economic security. Record Well Drilling and Discovery of 6 New Gas Fields

In the past decade and a half, domestic crisis management was achieved precisely by accelerating the process of enhancing local capabilities. At the beginning of 2009, gas production from domestic sources was a mere 1,744 million cubic feet per day (MMcfd), while imports stood at zero. Subsequently, nearly 155 wells were drilled and 6 new gas fields were discovered. As a result, a net addition of over 1,000 MMcfd of gas was connected to the national grid, surpassing 2,750 MMcfd per day by 2020.

Pace of Industrialization and LNG Infrastructure for Strategic Needs

Meeting the total demand of a rapidly expanding economy solely through domestic gas is practically impossible. Building 1,000 MMcfd capacity LNG infrastructure was a timely decision to support the country’s unprecedented economic growth, industrialization, and energy needs. Unlike conventional fuels like coal, establishing specialized terminals for receiving, storing, and re-gasifying LNG requires significant time and financial resources. Had this infrastructure not been built ahead of time, the national gas crisis could have turned into a major disaster.

Natural Depletion vs. Long-Term Exploration Framework

The scientific reality is that production from any oil or gas field naturally declines after prolonged extraction. The lead time between compensating for the depletion of old wells and bringing new gas discoveries into commercial supply is quite long. Consequently, keeping import options available was a strategy to ensure uninterrupted gas supply to keep the national economic wheel and industrial factories running—a pragmatic policy for any modern state.

Vested Interest Propaganda and Core Reality

Characterizing the entire policy as 'import dependence' solely based on the creation of LNG import infrastructure constitutes an incomplete analysis. To understand the true picture of the gas situation, one must look beyond the word 'import' and consider the rapid growth of the national economy, natural depletion of older fields, yields from new exploration, and the overall math of modern LNG infrastructure. The key driver here was the specific set of initiatives aimed at maximizing domestic extraction while simultaneously bridging the additional deficit.

Author: Anwaruzzaman Chowdhury, Politician, Mayor, Sylhet City Corporation.