NEW DELHI: Bangladesh has formally asked the Indian government to increase exports of petroleum products from state-owned Oil India Ltd’s Numaligarh Refinery through the India-Bangladesh Friendship Pipeline, according to three people familiar with the development.
While India has not yet accepted the request, officials say it may consider increasing supplies, which are crucial to Bangladesh’s key textile industry. The request comes as Bangladesh faces serious energy tensions due to the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz amid the Iran war.
“India has received a request from Bangladesh. The pipeline has a maximum capacity of 1 million tonnes per annum, the current amount procured is much less. So there is scope for further increase in supply if required. If the situation demands, the request may be considered,” said one of the three people cited above.
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A Numaligarh Refinery official said the company currently supplies around 100,000 tonnes of diesel to Bangladesh per year, as usual. “No special supplies have been added,” and that no directive has yet been issued to increase supplies.
India’s Ministry of Petroleum and External Affairs and the Bangladesh Embassy did not respond to emailed press inquiries.
Bangladesh Finance Minister Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury made the request at a meeting with Indian High Commissioner Pranay Verma over the weekend. An official at the Bangladesh embassy in Delhi said on condition of anonymity: “Bangladesh has been taking power from India for several years now. Due to the global situation, there have been some demands to increase diesel supplies. There are no updates yet.”
This request is in addition to the 5,000 tonnes of diesel already sent to Bangladesh Petroleum Corp. (BPC) based on the existing agreement. About 5,000 tonnes of diesel was delivered through the Bangladesh-India Friendship Pipeline on Monday, which is expected to reach the Parbatipur depot in Dinajpur in about 44 hours.
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BPC’s general manager of trade and operations, Muhammad Morshed Hossain Azad, said that around 113 tonnes of diesel would be pumped every hour, with the shipment likely to be delivered by Wednesday evening.
The 131 km pipeline, which was inaugurated in 2022, is the first cross-border energy link between India and Bangladesh. India supplies petroleum products to seven districts in northern Bangladesh through it, while Numaligarh Refinery has been supplying petroleum products to Bangladesh since 2015 by rail.
Built by estimate ₹377 million, part of which is costing Bangladesh ₹285 crore, funded by India through grant-in-aid.
Mint had earlier reported that India is also considering proposals to send high sulfur fuel oil (HSFO) and fuel oil to Bangladesh. HSFO is largely used in the marine industry, while fuel oil powers households, businesses and industrial units.
In addition to retail demand, crude oil supplies are critical to Bangladesh’s textile industry. The pipeline is also central to the expansion of Numaligarh Refinery Ltd, with Bangladesh being the most suitable market for its offtake.
India remains a key source of energy for Bangladesh.
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