Bangladesh’s government has sought Malaysian technical assistance after a technical fault shut gas supplies from the Maheshkhali floating LNG terminal to the national grid on July 21. The outage has cut about 450 million cubic feet of gas daily, worsening shortages for households, factories, power plants, CNG stations and other users. State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Anindya Islam Amit outlined the government’s response at a Secretariat press conference on July 29.

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman sent a letter to Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and later spoke with him by phone, requesting help to address the energy crisis. Education Adviser Mahdi Amin delivered the letter in Kuala Lumpur. Amit said Anwar had pledged to consult his team and relevant ministries quickly and inform Bangladesh’s prime minister. The government has also discussed possible LNG imports from Malaysia and using Malaysian experience and advice.

The energy division expects daily supplies of 280 to 300 million cubic feet to resume early next week, with the FSRU expected to be fully operational by the end of the following week. Residents of Mohammadpur and Adabor have announced a Friday protest over severe household shortages, low pressure and prolonged service problems.