Indo-Bangla Friendship Pipeline To Be Operational In February

The ambitious 130-kilometre-long Indo-Bangla Friendship Pipeline (IBFPL), built at a cost of Rs 377.08 crore, is expected to be completed next month, according to official sources on Sunday.

The IBFPL international oil pipeline will transport fuel from Assam's Numaligarh Refinery Ltd's (NRL) marketing terminal in Siliguri, West Bengal, to Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation's Parbatipur depot (BPC).

The mechanical works of the bilateral project, which is being funded by India, were completed on 12 December, last year, according to a senior NRL official who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

“We have set a completion date of February 2023 for commissioning,” he added.

The groundbreaking ceremony for the 130-kilometre IBFPL was held in September 2018 via video conferencing in the presence of the Prime Ministers of India and Bangladesh.

“The project is truly an engineering marvel. We had to overcome many obstacles, but with mutual cooperation and technological understanding between the two countries, this international project will see the light of day,” said another senior executive from the Northeast's largest refiner.

The IBFPL has been implemented successfully as a result of true friendship between India and Bangladesh, and it will stand as a testament to the best relationship between the two South East Asian nations, she added.

In 2017, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi agreed to finance this pipeline with a capacity of one million metric tonnes per year during a meeting with Hasina (MMTPA).

The total project cost for the IBFPL's construction is Rs 377.08 crore. NRL's investment is Rs 91.84 crore for the India portion of the pipeline, with the remaining Rs 285.24 crore funded by the Indian government as grant-in-aid for the Bangladesh portion.

Bangladesh will begin importing gas and oil from NRL later this year, according to a recent report prepared by the Assam Assembly on the visit of a delegation of legislators to the neighbouring country.

The delegation met with Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who said that “importing fuel oil from India via pipeline” will begin this year.

“She said that Bangladesh wishes to import oil from India via pipeline... The 130-kilometre India-Bangladesh Friendship Pipeline (IBFPL) project will "export oil products from India to Bangladesh,” according to the report.

NRL and BPC signed a long-term agreement in April 2017 to sell High-Speed Diesel (HSD) from India to Bangladesh via the IBFPL.

Later that year, in October, the state-run NRL signed another 15-year agreement with the BPC for the export of gas oil (diesel) to the neighbouring country.

Oil India owns 69.63 per cent of NRL, while Assam Government and Engineers India own 26 per cent and 4.37 per cent, respectively.