The nation’s industries were facing a power fuel shortage for roughly two years and it has severely impacted their production and profitability.
Despite executive assurances of an improved fuel provide tell by mid-July following repairs of a damaged FSRU (floating storage regasification unit), entrepreneurs characterize that the tell remains unchanged in October, with regards to three months later.
Masses of textile mills, collectively with about a of the nation’s largest, have reported indispensable production cuts and big monetary losses.
Israq Spinning Mills Little, one in every of the largest textile mills located at Mawna of Sreepur upazila in Gazipur, has seen its fuel rigidity plummet to attract zero at height time, vastly lowering its production capability from 160 tonnes a day to merely 60 tonnes.
Fazlul Haque, managing director of Israq Spinning Mills Little, instructed TBS, “Even supposing my mill has reputation of 15 PSI [pounds per square inch, a measurement unit for gas pressure], it drops to 1 and even zero [during peak hours]. If the rigidity increases a chunk at evening, I will resume production.”
He added, “My day-to-day production capability is 160 tonnes, nonetheless on sensible, I will easiest perform 60 tonnes. In other phrases, on account of the fuel shortage, easiest 60% of the factory’s capability is being utilised. As a consequence, we’re incurring indispensable monetary losses.”
Identical scenarios were reported by Intimate Spinning Mills Little and Little Neatly-known person Spinning Mills Little of the connected team located in Dhaka’s Savar and Narayanganj’s Vulta, respectively, with fuel pressures as minute as 1.5 PSI in one factory and 1 PSI in one more the day before on the present time afternoon.
Khorshed Alam, chairman of Little Community Little, instructed TBS, “With the addition of electricity, easiest 40% of the entire production capability is being utilised every month.”
He additionally shared the fuel invoice for one in every of his factories for August to show the extent of the fuel shortage.
“I am incurring a loss of Tk1.1 crore monthly from every mills. Now, I am buying for a mode to exit this enterprise,” Khorshed acknowledged.
Two years previously, the fuel label changed into as soon as elevated by up to 179%, and the then executive acknowledged that the magnify changed into as soon as considerable to salvage sure uninterrupted provide. On the different hand, since then, the tell has now now not improved.
After talking with eight industrialists from four areas, collectively with Narayanganj, Gazipur, and Savar, seven of them reported that they are littered with the ongoing fuel provide crisis.
Industry sources instruct there are over 700 fuel-essentially essentially essentially based industries in the district. All of these factories are in the imply time suffering on account of the fuel crisis, they acknowledged.
Entrepreneurs instruct the crisis reached its height on the end of Would possibly per chance maybe presumably additionally when an FSRU changed into as soon as damaged on account of Cyclone Remal.
Later, executive officials assured that the fuel provide tell would strengthen by mid-July, following the return of the FSRU after being repaired in Singapore.
On the different hand, the entrepreneurs instruct, the tell has now now not improved even in October.
Petrobangla officials instruct there is on the least a 30% shortfall when compared to inquire of.
Md Kamruzzaman Khan, director of Petrobangla, instructed TBS, “Presumably the most up-to-date day-to-day inquire of is 3,800 to 4,000 million well-liked cubic feet per day (mmcfd), whereas the provision is roughly 2,700 mmcfd.”
He, then again, acknowledged the fuel provide tell has improved a chunk. “Previously, we were receiving 500 mmcfd from LNG day-to-day, nonetheless now we’re getting 700 mmcfd.”
Kamruzzaman acknowledged the provision will magnify to 900 mmcfd after 15 October, as soon as the LNG purchased from the space market arrives in the nation.
Entrepreneurs timid about bank mortgage repayment
Fazlul Haque acknowledged, “We’re incurring losses of crores of taka every month. We now have got loans exceeding a thousand crore taka in the bank. How will we repay this cash?”
Expressing his frustration, he acknowledged, “If I had an exit policy, I could presumably per chance exit this enterprise permanently.”
Mohammad Hatem, managing director of MB Knit Fashions Little, a Narayanganj-essentially essentially essentially based garment factory, instructed TBS, “I’ve a ending unit in my factory and one more factory named MS Loss of life Printing Little. As a result of the fuel crisis, the loss in every factories amounts to with regards to Tk2 crore.”
He added, “I will wouldn’t have any chance nonetheless to flip staunch into a mortgage defaulter,” he acknowledged, adding that since March, many garment and textile factory owners are in possibility of changing into defaulters as neatly.
Azahar Khan, chairman of Mithela Textile Industries Little, acknowledged, “I manufacture now now not know the diagram I pays salaries subsequent month if I manufacture now now not salvage cash from the bank. I am unable to gauge whether employee unrest surfaces,” he acknowledged. “My factory is on lifestyles enhance on account of the fuel crisis.”
