Gas-rich Qatar on Tuesday agreed to work on technical details for a proposed land-based LNG terminal in Bangladesh and renew a recently expired Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on LNG supply for Bangladesh.

Qatar Minister of State for Energy Affairs Saad bin Sherida Al Kaabi made the promise when he  met Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus on the sidelines of the Earthna Summit in Doha.

“We want to support Bangladesh as much as possible, and we will continue doing that,” Kaabi told the Chief Adviser.

Qatar and Bangladesh signed a Sell Purchase Agreement (LNG SPA) in September 2017 for 1.5-2.5 MTPA LNG imports for 15 years in a G2G process with Qatar Gas.

Forty cargoes are being imported under this agreement annually.

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A second LNG SPA was signed in June 2023 for an additional 1.5 MTs of LNG annually for 15 years, with effect from January 2026.

An MoU signed regarding the LNG SPA expired in January, prompting Qatari authorities to come up with a renewed pledge.

“We will sign the MoU right away,” said the Qatari state minister, who insisted on a long-term partnership between the two countries and said that they were expecting the price of LNG to come down as the country was planning to double their production.

“Long-term contracts are always the best solution for supply security,” he said.

Chief Adviser Professor Yunus told the Qatari state minister that Bangladesh wants to explore its energy potential with the help of Qatar.

“We need your help to reorganize our energy sector,” he said.

Energy Adviser Mohammad Fouzul Kabir Khan, who was present during the meeting, said that Bangladesh is planning to build a land-based LNG terminal with pipeline and supply of LNG and deliver R-LNG through construction of a pipeline under an umbrella in Matarbari Cox’s Bazar to upgrade energy infrastructure.

He also informed that the country was planning to raise the number of LNG cargoes from Qatar, with the country’s LNG terminals currently able to handle 115 cargoes annually.

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During the meeting, the Qatari state minister said that they were also planning to increase urea fertiliser supply to Bangladesh.

Foreign Adviser Md Touhid Hossain, National Security Adviser Khalilur Rahman, BIDA Chairman Ashik Mahmud, SDGs Affairs Principal Coordinator Lamiya Morshed, and Energy Secretary Mohammad Saiful Islam were, among others, present.