No real fuel shortage in Bangladesh, crisis artificially created: Energy minister
Outstanding power bills stand at Tk52,300cr, he says
Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Iqbal Hassan Mahmood has said there is no fuel shortage in the country, alleging that unscrupulous traders have created an artificial crisis by hoarding and engaging in black market sales.
"An artificial crisis is being created due to panic buying and hoarding," he said in response to a tabled question from opposition MP from Netrokona-5 Masum Mustafa in parliament today (19 April).
The minister said tag officers, along with district and upazila administrations, have been deployed to ensure a normal fuel supply. Magistrates are taking action against hoarders, imposing fines or jail terms.
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"Law enforcement agencies are also working to prevent hoarding and black marketing," he said, adding that 3,510 cases have been filed through mobile court drives across the country, a fine of Tk1.56 crore has been collected, and 5.42 lakh litres of fuel have been seized.
He said that in order to bring greater transparency in fuel marketing, the government has introduced fuel cards on an experimental basis at some filling stations in Dhaka city.
In response to a tabled question from ruling party MP from Pabna-5 Md Shamsur Rahman Simul Biswas, the minister said the country's LPG market is about 98.67% import-dependent.
"The LPG import situation is being monitored regularly to keep the supply normal amid the ongoing war in the Middle East," he said.
To this end, he said, the LPG import situation in the country is being regularly reviewed from the National Board of Revenue's Asycuda World System. If any abnormality is found, importers are being contacted. Besides, the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission is being informed to take action.
Tk52,300cr outstanding power plant bills
In reply to a tabled question from BNP lawmaker SM Jahangir Hossain (Dhaka-18), the minister said the outstanding bills of government and private power plants including electricity imports stood at Tk52,300 crore as of 9 April 2026.
Of the total, Tk11,634.06 crore is owed to Petrobangla for gas bill arrears from government and private companies, while Tk3,891.55 crore remains unpaid for imports from India.
He further said Tk17,357.68 crore is due as capacity payments and fuel payments to gas- and fuel oil-based Independent Power Producer (IPP) plants and another Tk15,452.91 crore remains outstanding for coal prices and capacity payments for joint venture and IPP coal-based power plants.
Besides, Tk5,623.03 crore is owed to government-owned power companies as capacity payments and fuel payment arrears while Tk198.94 crore is pending as hauling charges. The minister also informed parliament that the total amount of bank loans taken by power plants stands at Tk1,49,311.26 crore.
Process underway to recover funds laundered under power deals
In reply to a question from Simul Biswas, the minister said the process of repatriating money allegedly embezzled and laundered abroad under quick rental power projects. The finance ministry and Bangladesh Bank are jointly working to trace and recover the funds.
He said the Power and Energy Supply Enhancement (Special Provision) Act, 2010 had allowed power projects to be approved without open tender or standard procurement.
Iqbal Hasan said the law was repealed after the interim government took office, with an ordinance issued in its place. The ordinance was later passed as a bill on 7 April.
Gas reserve enough for 12 years
In reply to a starred tabled question from Mosharraf Hossain, the minister said Bangladesh currently has an estimated 7.63 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of natural gas remaining in its reserves, which could meet the demand for 12 years at the present consumption rate.
Of the total reserve, 22.11tcf of gas has already been extracted as of 31 December 2025, while 7.63tcf remained in reserve as of 1 January 2026, he said in reply to a starred tabled question from ruling party lawmaker elected from Bogura-4, Md Mosharraf Hossain.
He said the country currently has an estimated extractable natural gas reserve of 29.74tfc.
He said that if no new gas fields are discovered and the current daily supply rate of approximately 1,700 million cubic feet is maintained, the remaining reserve will be sufficient to meet the demand for 12 years.
Listing various steps, the minister said the government has undertaken a number of initiatives to explore new gas resources across the country.
Rumeen Farhana slams govt over 'fuel crisis'
Independent MP Rumeen Farhana of Brahmanbaria-2 accused the government of misleading the public over fuel shortages and price hikes, challenging its repeated claim that there is no crisis.
"The situation on the ground tells a different story," she said, pointing to long queues of up to three kilometres at filling stations, with drivers waiting till midnight without getting fuel.
"If there is no crisis, why are there such long queues and price increases?" she said. She also criticised the decision to close markets at 7pm instead of 8pm, calling it "short-sighted".
Demanding transparency, she sought disclosure on national stock levels of octane and diesel, reasons behind supply shortages at pumps, and possible hoarding. Her remarks triggered protests from ruling party members, who switched off her microphone.
