Kaladan News

Dated: Wednesday, February 16, 2005

Rangoon Requests Dhaka to Send Its Representatives at Tri-Nation Gas Line Talks

Chittagong, February, 16: Burma government has requested Bangladesh to take part in the first meeting of techno-commercial working committee scheduled to be held by the end of February, according to sources.

To pave the way for signing a trilateral agreement on a three-nation pipeline to take gas from Burma to India through Bangladesh.

The Energy Planning Department Director General U Soe Myint has made the request to Bangladesh to send the names of its nominees, and if everything goes on track, then they are ready to arrange the meeting on February 24-25.

"We have not got any message and given any reply to the Burma government in this regard," State Minister for Energy and Mineral Resources AKM Mosharraf Hossain told The Independent yesterday. He also said that he did not receive any invitation in this regard.

Reliable sources, however, said that the Burma authorities have sent the message to SR Osmani, chairman of Petrobangla.

They said as per request of the Burma government, Bangladesh nominated SR Osmani and Manzur Morshed, Managing Director, GTCL as members of the technical committee. However, Manzur Morshed recently resigned from his position and Engineer Khondakar Abdus Saleque, Director of Operations, GTCL replaced him.

Earlier, it was scheduled that a six-member tripartite working committee would begin a study, on the 14th of the current month, on the proposed gas pipeline from Burma to India through Bangladesh to pave the way for signing a trilateral agreement in April.

It may be mentioned that following the sudden postponement of the SAARC summit after India expressed her inability to attend the 13th South Asian grand meet, the future of the tri-nation gas pipeline project came under fresh scrutiny by the Bangladesh government.

It was learnt that according to the directives of a section of stalwarts in the administration, the government is unlikely to take part in the tripartite gas supply project study on the proposed route of the pipeline, and also on charges and management involving India and Burma, which was due to be held on February 14, 2005.

Sources said, the Energy Ministry yesterday, as per earlier decision has sent the names of the two officials to the Prime Minister's Office for the PM's approval for their representation in the committee. New Delhi is yet to send Dhaka the names of its two representatives, sources said.

"We see some names in the newspapers, but the Indian side has not yet provided us information about the committee members so far", State Minister AKM Mosharraf Hossain said yesterday.

Once the Prime Minister approves of the two names from Bangladesh, and Delhi sends its two names, the committee will start its work, the State Minister hoped.

Following the much-talked-about two-day tripartite Energy Ministers’ meeting between India, Burma and Bangladesh which was held in Rangoon on January 12-13, Dhaka set preconditions that included allowing Dhaka to bring hydroelectricity from Nepal and Bhutan, providing the two Himalayan countries with trade transit facilities across India, and reducing trade gap between Bangladesh and India.

During the meeting, Indian Energy Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Mani Shankar Aiyar asked AKM Mosharraf Hossain, the Bangladesh State Minister for Energy and Mineral Resources, to submit a formal proposal on the three conditions. Mosharraf told Aiyar that Dhaka would only give its nod to an agreement of the gas pipeline through Bangladesh if India fulfilled Dhaka's demands.

It was learnt that the committee will finalize a draft of a memorandum of understanding, to be signed among India, Bangladesh and Burma, sources at the Energy Ministry and Petrobangla said.

The MOU is likely to be signed in April after the respective cabinets of the three countries give approval to the draft.

However, State Minister for Energy and Mineral Resources, AKM Mosharraf Hossain told The Independent that the committee would not prepare the MOU draft. ‘It will work only for the pipeline route and commercial sides. ##

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