The government will procure lentil, loose soybean oil, loose palm oil, LNG, fertiliser, crude and refined petroleum oil. The Advisers Council Committee on Government Purchase in a meeting, with Finance Advisor Dr Salehuddin Ahmed in the chair, approved a number of proposals of different ministries in this regard on Wednesday. It also approved printing of textbooks for students. Approving the proposals, Dr Salehuddin Ahmed said the government has been promptly approving different proposals to buy essential commodities which reflects the cordial intention of the government to keep the market stable through ensuring smooth supply. Govt to procure rice, sugar, lentil, fertilizer for domestic needs As per proposals, moved by the Commerce Ministry, the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) will purchase 10,000 metric tons (MT) of lentils, 38.10 lakh litres of loose soybean oil, 1.10 lakh litres of palm oil for its Open Market Sale Programme. Of these, the Nabil Naba Foods Limited won a contract through open tender to supply 10,000 MT of lentil at Tk 95.97 crore with each kg at Tk 95.97. Each bag will contain 50 kg lentils. S Alam Super Edible Oil Ltd will supply 38.10 lakh litres of refined loose soybean oil under direct purchase method (DPM) at a cost of Tk 53.34 crore, with each litre at Tk 140 while the same company will supply 1.10 lakh refined loose palm oil at a cost of Tk 143 crore with each litre at Tk 130. The Bangladesh Oil Gas and Petroleum Corporation – Petrobangla will import one cargo of LNG through international quotation from the international spot market. TCB to procure soybean oil, sugar, lentil to sell through OMS Vitol Asia Pte. Ltd, Singapore will supply the cargo at a cost of Tk 708.55 crore, with each MMBtu at $15.02.The Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) will import 600,000 MT of Murban Crude petroleum from Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) of UAE at a cost of Tk 5208.364 crore for the year 2025 while it will import 700,000 MT of Arabian Light Crude (ALC) from Saudi Arabian Oil Company (SAUDI ARAMCO) at a cost of Tk 6025.206 crore.The committee also approved a proposal to import refined petroleum through international; quotation from Unipec Singapore Pte Ltd', Singapore; Vitol Asia Pte-Ltd., Singapore and Co OQ Trading Limited, Dubai' UAE at a cost of Tk 1070.164 crore,. But quantity was not mentioned in the brief proposal. The Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) will import 30,000 MT of bulk granular urea fertilizer at Tk 223.23 crore from SABIC Agri-nutrients Company, Saudi Arabia. Govt to procure 55,000 MT soybean oil for OMS The Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation (BADC) will import 30,000 MT of MOP fertiliser from JSC Foreign Economic corporation "Prodintorg at Tk 104.31 crore, 40,000 MT of DAP fertiliser from OCP NUTRCROPS of Morocco at Tk 280.68 crore, another 30,000 MT of TSP at Tk 252.46 crore from the NUTRCROPS of Morocco. The committee also approved awarding of contracts to different suppliers for printing and supplying of textbooks to distribute those among the students at free of cost.

The government has approved the procurement of rice, sugar, lentil, and fertilizer to address domestic demands and stabilize markets. The decision was taken at a meeting of the Advisors Council Committee on Government Purchase (ACCGP), chaired by Finance Adviser Dr. Salehuddin Ahmed. TCB to procure soybean oil, sugar, lentil to sell through OMS Rice Procurement: Imports from Myanmar and India Under proposals from the Commerce Ministry, the Food Directorate will import: * 100,000 metric tons (MT) of white rice from Myanmar through a government-to-government (G-to-G) contract. The Myanmar Rice Federation (MRF) will supply the rice at a total cost of Tk 618 crore, with each MT priced at $515. * 50,000 MT of non-Basmati boiled rice through an international open tender. Indian supplier Mondol Stone Product Pvt will provide the rice at a total cost of Tk 280.62 crore, with each MT priced at $467.70. Sugar and Lentil Procurement by TCB The Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB), under the Commerce Ministry, will procure: * 5,000 MT of sugar through a local open tender. City Sugar Industries will supply the sugar at a cost of Tk 59.21 crore, with each kilogram priced at Tk 118.43. * 10,000 MT of lentils through a local open tender. Payel Traders will supply the lentils at a total cost of Tk 96.69 crore, with each kilogram priced at Tk 96.69. Fertilizer Imports by BCIC The Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC), under the Industries Ministry, will import 60,000 MT of urea fertilizer, divided between two contracts: * 30,000 MT of bulk granular urea fertilizer from Saudi Arabia’s SABIC Agri-nutrients Company at a cost of Tk 123.23 crore, with each MT priced at $342.33. * 30,000 MT of bagged prilled urea fertilizer from Qatar Energy Marketing at a cost of Tk 133.08 crore, with each MT priced at $369.67.Govt to procure 51,973 MT paddy from Khulna amid bumper harvest Additionally, the BCIC will import 30,000 MT of rock phosphate through an international open tender. UAE-based Zentrade FZE will supply the product at a cost of Tk 82.62 crore, with each MT priced at $229.50. Govt to procure 55,000 MT soybean oil for OMS

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Sunday (November 12, 2023) opened newly built Ghorashal-Palash Urea Fertilizer Factory (GPUFF), the largest of its kind in Southeast Asia, which will reduce the country’s dependence on fertiliser imports and create jobs. The annual production capacity of the environment friendly and modern fertiliser factory in Narsingdi is some 1 million metric tons, capable of producing 2,800 metric tons of urea daily. the local demand for urea fertilizer is some 26 lakh metric tons annually. If this newly built plant goes in full swing production, some 20 lakh metric tons of urea will be produced yearly in the country.So, the factory will play a leading role in meeting the growing demand of urea fertiliser, ensuring supply of fertilizers to farmers at affordable prices, saving foreign currency by reducing imports and creating employment opportunities. Bangladeshi farmers need to use fertilizer and water efficiently: Experts Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) has implemented the 'Ghorashal Polash Urea Fertilizer Project' on 110 acres of land at a cost of around Tk 15,500 crore. The construction work for the project began on March 10, 2020. Out of the total project cost, TK 4,580.21 crore came from the government exchequer while Tk 10,920 crore from Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFG Limited (MUFG) and the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited (HSBC) as commercial loan. As per the instruction of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in 2014, the industries ministry took an initiative to set up a new granular urea fertiliser factory at the place of the existing two fertiliser factories - Urea Fertiliser Factory Limited (UFFL) and Polash Urea Fertilizer Factory Limited (PUFFL) at Ghorashal under Palash upazila in Narsingdi district. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Limited (MHI) and China National Chemical Engineering No 7 Construction Co Ltd (CC-7) jointly constructed the factory, which will have an annual production capacity of 9.24 lakh metric tons. The daily production capacity of the new factory is about three times higher than that of the earlier two fertiliser factories. GPUFF is the first fertiliser factory in Bangladesh where the environmental pollutant Carbon-Di-Oxide (CO2) will be captured from the primary reformer flue gas and the production of urea fertilizer will be increased (about 10pc ) by using the captured CO2. The prime minister released a commemorative postage stamp, marking the inauguration of the factory. Earlier, PM Sheikh Hasina inspected the factory. Fertilizer price increased by 105% in Bangladesh since Russia-Ukraine war: Report

The government of Bangladesh has raised the prices of Urea, TSP, DAP and MOP fertilisers by Tk 5 per kg at both farmer and dealership levels. The new rates came into effect on Monday. The agriculture ministry issued an order in this regard on Monday following a letter sent by the finance department of the finance ministry. The prices have been refixed aiming to keep the fertilizer import at a rational level amid the hike in its prices at the international level and ensure optimum utilization of fertilizers, said the order. Read More: Cabinet body approves proposals for import of LNG, fertiliser and lentil At the farmers’ level, the price of per kg Urea has been raised to Tk 27 from Tk 22, DAP to Tk 21 from Tk 16, TSP to Tk 27 from Tk 22 and MOP to Tk 20 from Tk 15. Similarly, at the dealers’ level, the Urea price has been re-fixed at Tk 25 instead of Tk 20, DAP at Tk 19 instead of Tk 14, TSP at Tk 25 instead of Tk 20 and MOP at Tk 18 instead of Tk 13. The current price of Urea, DAP, TSP and MOP fertilisers in the international market is Tk 48, Tk 70, Tk 50 and Tk 60 per kg respectively. As a result, the government is still giving a subsidy of Tk 21 in Urea, Tk 49 in DAP, Tk 23 in TSP and Tk 40 in MOP per kg even after the latest price hike, said a media release of the agriculture ministry. Read More: Production at Shahjalal Fertiliser Company suspended for 2 months, causing Tk 50 lakh in losses daily Fertilizer prices were raised by 3-4 times in the global market in the last three years, resulting in hike in government subsidy in the country four times, it said. In the fiscal year 2020-21, the amount of subsidy was Tk 7,420 crore while it increased to TK 28 crore in 21-22 FY and in the running 2022-23 fiscal year, about Tk 46,000 crore will be required for subsidy. From 2008-09 to 2022-23 fiscal years, Tk 1,19,837 crore was spent as fertiliser subsidy.

The prices of agricultural input  products including fertiliser and seed will not be increased to continue the current production volume and ensure food security, said Agriculture Minister Abdur Razzaque. "Increasing food production at any cost for sustainable food security is the current government’s policy," said the minister while addressing the opening ceremony of an international conference on Food and Nutrition Security. The Bangladesh Agricultural Extension Network (BAEN) and India’s Participatory Rural Development Initiative Society (PRDIS) jointly organised the three-day conference. “Thus, the government will not increase the prices of agricultural products despite the current economic situation. The government will continue subsidising the agriculture sector. We’ll do whatever it takes for sustainable agriculture production,” he said. Read more: Bangladesh to buy fertiliser at lower cost, thanks to declining global price “We had a bumper yield of aman paddy this year. A record amount of food grain is in stock. I can guarantee we won’t have to witness a famine,” he said. He also stated that agricultural extension workers must investigate why new crop varieties and technology take so long to reach farmers.

The Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase (CCGP) on Wednesday approved a number of proposals including import of a total of 180,000 metric tons (MT) of fertiliser. The committee also approved a proposal of the Bangladesh Bridge Authority to pay 65 percent of the payment in Bangladesh currency and remaining 35 percent in foreign currency (US dollar) to the Chinese service provider of the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Tunnel. Read more: Proposals to import sugar, fertilizer get cabinet body nod Earlier, the Chinese CCCC was appointed as service provider at a cost of Tk 983.82 crore for a five-year tenure. It will collect the toll from the tunnel user vehicles and also conduct its operation and maintenance work. Under the new approval, the Chinese CCCC will get annually Tk 656.98 crore (as 65 percent of the payment) in local currency and $35.162 million (equivalent to Tk 326.83 crore) in US dollar. Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal presided over the virtual meeting while members of the committee attended it. As per approval, Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) will import 90,000 MT of urea fertiliser in four equal lots while the Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation will import the remaining 90,000 MT MOP and DAP fertiliser in two lots. In one lot, the BCIC will import 30,000 MT of bulk granular urea fertiliser from Fertiglobe Distribution Limited, UAE at a cost of Tk 189.28 crore with per matric ton’s value at $594.67. Some 60,000 MT of the same urea will be imported by the BCIC from SABIC Agri-nutrients Company of Saudi Arabia in two lots (each 30,000 MT) at the same rate and the total cost will be Tk 387.56 crore. Read more: Cabinet purchase body okays import of 90,000 MT fertiliser, other proposals The BCIC will also import 30,000 MT of phosphoric acid from Sun International of FZE, the UAE (local agent RK Enterprise, Dhaka) at a contract value of Tk 215.14 crore. The BADC, under the Agriculture Ministry, will import 50,000 MT of MOP fertiliser from Canada at a cost of Tk 416.64 crore with per MT price at $821. It will import 40,000 MT of DAP from Saudi Arabia at a cost of Tk 308.78 crore with per MT price at $826.50. The committee gave nod to a proposal of the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) to award a Tk 102.61 crore civil work contract to Ideal Electrical Enterprise Ltd., under Bangladesh Power Distribution System Improvement, Mymensingh zone project.

The Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase in a virtual meeting on Wednesday approved a number of proposals including the import of 90,000 metric tonnes of fertiliser. Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal presided over the virtual meeting.   The Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) will buy entire fertilisers in three separate lots from three different companies under separate contracts. As per the proposals, some 30,000 MT of bagged granular urea fertiliser will be procured from Karnaphuli Fertiliser Company (Kafco) at a cost of Tk 197.46 crore while another 30,000 MT of bulk granullar urea from Muntajat of Qatar at a cost of Tk 200.55 crore. The remaining 30,000 MT will be imported by the BCIC from SABIC Agri-nutrients Company of Saudia Arabia at the same price.    Read: Cabinet committee approves contract extension of 4 rental power plants, 200,000 MT rice import from Myanmar The BCIC will also import 30,000 MT of phosphoric acid at Tk 233.82 crore for its DAP Fertiliser Company Limited.  The committee approved a proposal of the Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division's proposal to appoint the Joint Venture of (1) Dohatec Media Bangladesh; and (2) GSS Infotech Ltd. India as a consultant for its Digitizing Implementation Monitoring and Public Procurement project at a contract value of Tk 51.23 crore. A proposal of the Public Works Department under the Housing and Public Works Ministry received a nod for its proposal to award a contract to The Engineers & Architects Ltd., to build a 14-story residential building at Tk 144.36 crore.

Imports of rice and fertilisers were among 10 proposals approved by the Cabinet Committee on Public Purchase on Wednesday.

The waste treatment plant at Jhumjhumpur in Sadar municipality area has become a role model in recycling wastes, turning them into biogas and fertiliser.

Khulna, Sept 6 (UNB) – Some 40,000 metric tonnes of three types of fertiliser kept under the open sky here covered with merely tarpaulin for a year for lack of storage space have got damaged, sources at the Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC) said.