DHAKA – It may seem strange that Bangladeshis want to import gas while countries like India want the nation to become a gas exporter.

But a Bangladeshi businessman is keen to import gas from Myanmar’s neighbouring Rakhine State through a pipeline. He has already made his intention known to both governments.

“A consortium comprising private sector entrepreneurs is ready to import gas from Rakhine in Myanmar. I don’t want to wait for donors’ suggestions or their money,” Syed Mahmudul Huq told bdnews24.com.

“Our gas reserve will get exhausted in 2011 and we’ll have to go for purchasing it from other sources,” said Huq, who is chairman of the Bangladesh-Myanmar Business Promotion Council (BMBPC).

Myanmar has massive natural gas reserves off the Rakhine coast in the Bay of Bengal, which have been the focus of fierce competition between India and China.

“Initially, the imported gas will be used for producing fertiliser, which will be used as an input for the planned contract farming in Myanmar,” Huq said.

Karnaphuli Fertiliser Company Ltd had also showed interest in the proposal, he said. Once the demand for gas to produce fertiliser for contract farming is met, the surplus gas would be used for power generation to reduce deficits in power supply, according to Huq.

Bangladesh and Myanmar are not only close neighbours, they also have deep-rooted cultural and economic bonds, Huq added. – Energy Bangla