Mohammadi News Agency News – Features – Photo
MNA Business Desk: India is planning to build an oil and gas pipeline with Bangladesh for improving cooperation in the energy sector. Dharmendra Pradhan, India’s petroleum and natural gas minister said this in Kolkata on Sunday.
Talking with news reporters at the launch of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana’ (PMUY) in West Bengal, Pradhan said that he made a productive conversation about oil and gas pipeline building cooperation with Bangladesh premier Sheikh Hasina during his recent visit to the neighboring country.
“The Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) has started the process for a pipeline from Contai in West Bengal via Haldia to Duttapulia on the India-Bangladesh border for supplying oil and natural gas.” Pradhan said.
“We have discussed with our Bangladesh friends and have agreed to take the pipeline to Bangladesh. There are also talks to bring the pipeline back to India through Siliguri,” he also said.
“A lot of energy cooperation is building up with Bangladesh. During my recent visit, I had very fruitful talks with the Bangladesh prime minister and their energy minister. We have started supplying diesel now, there are plans to supply natural gas as well,” he added.
“The Bangladesh prime minister is slated to visit India later, but before that my Bangladeshi counterpart (Nasrul Hamid) is coming.” Pradhan said.
Pradhan also said that together they will create the ground for more energy cooperation so that the prime ministers of both India and Bangladesh can ink more deals.
“We have booked substantial gas in several parts of the world including America, Australia, Mozambique. We have long term contract with Qatar and are also discussing with Iran. So we have plenty of gas bookings and India as a whole is augmenting its LNG terminal capacity,” he further added.
However, to enhance cooperation between India and Bangladesh in the field of power, the two countries signed an agreement on January 11, 2010 during Prime Minister Hasina’s landmark visit to New Delhi.
India subsequently started supplying power to Bangladesh from December 2013 after the up gradation of transmission network in the neighboring country. Currently, India is providing 500 MW of power from Bahrampur-Bheramara inter-connection.
