Mineral Resources

Natural Gas is Bangladesh's most important source of commercial energy. It meets 70% of the country's commercial energy requirement. Other sources of primary energy are imported petroleum products and coal.

The construction work of Barapukuria Coal Mine project has been started in 1994. It has a proven reserve of 303 million metric tons and is expected to he commissioned in 2000-2001. The Madhyapara Hard Rock project is expected to produce 1.65 million tons of hard rock annually after its commissioning in the year 2000.

Energy

Bangladesh has small reserves of oil and coal, but potentially very large natural gas resources. Commercial energy consumption is around 67% natural gas, with the remainder mostly oil (plus limited amounts of hydropower and coal). Only around 18% of the population (25% in urban areas and 10% in rural areas) has access to electricity, and per capita commercial energy consumption is among the lowest in the world. Noncommercial energy sources, such as wood, animal wastes, and crop residues, are estimated to account for over half of the country's energy consumption. Consumption of wood for fuel has contributed to deforestation and other environmental problems in Bangladesh. The World Bank has estimated that Bangladesh loses around $1 billion per year due to power outages and unreliable energy supplies.

Oil

Bangladesh contains small proven oil reserves of 56.9 million barrels and produces around 6,200 barrels per day (bbl/d), of which 6,000 bbl/d is crude oil. Until the beginning of the 1990s, state oil and gas company Petrobangla, along with its eight operating companies (OCs), was the sole player in the Bangladeshi oil and gas sectors. To date, oil exploration has proven largely unsuccessful, although hopes continue, especially onshore.

Natural Gas

Natural gas is Bangladesh's only significant source of commercial energy, with 2001 production of 349.6 billion cubic feet (Bcf). Bangladeshi natural gas production began in 1960 from the Chattak Field. There is much uncertainty and debate about the level of natural gas reserves in Bangladesh. Current Bangladeshi government estimates, revised upward in May 2003, put net proven reserves at 18.0 Tcf. The US Geological Survey has estimated that Bangladesh contains an additional 32.1 Tcf in additional "undiscovered reserves." Bangladesh may have the potential to become a major gas producer (as well as supplier to the vast potential market in neighboring India) at some point. Bangladesh also could use its natural gas resources to power vehicles (the government already has announced plans to convert government vehicles to compressed natural gas to help alleviate pollution problems in Dhaka, and also in response to high oil prices), to produce electricity, petrochemicals, and fertilizers, which it also could use both within the country as well as for export. Natural gas exports are controversial within Bangladesh, with many people feeling that Bangladeshi gas resources first should be used for domestic purposes (i.e., electric power generation, fertilizer production, transportation), and also that the size of the country's gas reserves remains highly uncertain, particularly in relation to future domestic demand projections.

Bangladesh's natural gas demand is expected by some independent analysts to grow by around 6% annually over the next two decades. Potential uses for natural gas in Bangladesh include: petrochemicals, compressed natural gas (CNG) for vehicles, power generation, and fertilizer. Bangladesh also contains around 55 million barrels of natural gas liquids (NGLs), which could be used for petrochemicals production or as a cooking fuel to help reduce deforestation and pollution. Production of NGLs is currently only about 200 bbl/d.

Coal
Bangladesh began its first significant coal production in April 2003 with the opening of the Barapukuria Coal Mine in the Dinjapur area of northwest Bangladesh. The project can produce about one million short tons of coal per year, to be used primarily for electricity generation. Another possible coal mining project, at Khalashpir, is under consideration.