The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) on Wednesday approved a total of 13 development projects with an estimated cost of Tk58,088.92 crore including a fresh project to drill two new gas wells at Tk592 crore for availing 30 mmcfd.
 
Prime Minister and ECNEC Chairman Tarique Rahman presided over the sixth ECNEC meeting of the current fiscal year (FY27) at the Cabinet Room of Bangladesh Secretariat.
 
Of the approved 13 projects, 11 are new while two are revised projects.
 
Of the total estimated cost of Tk55,088.92 crore, the government will provide Tk50,041.20 crore, Tk73.07 crore will come from concerned organisation’s own funds while the rest of Tk7,974.65 crore from project assistance.
 
State Minister for Planning Md Zonayed Abdur Rahim Saki briefed reporters after the meeting at the NEC Conference Room in the city’s Sher-e-Bangla Nagar area.
 
According to the Planning Commission, the government will drill two appraisal-cum-development wells at the Titas Gas Field at an estimated cost of Tk592 crore to increase domestic gas production by around 30 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd).
 
The project titled "Drilling of Two Appraisal-cum-Development Wells (Titas-32 and Titas-33) at Titas Gas Field," will be implemented by the Bangladesh Gas Fields Company Limited (BGFCL), a Petrobangla subsidiary, under the Energy and Mineral Resources Division of the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources till September 2029.
 
Of the total estimated cost, Tk414.40 crore will come from government financing and Tk177.60 crore from the company's own funds.
 
The government has set a target to drill 150 wells by 2031 to raise gas output, followed by another 150 wells during the 2031-'35 period to further strengthen the country's local gas production.
 
According to the proposal, the wells could produce around 100.74 billion cubic feet (BCF) of gas and 60,444 barrels of condensate over 10 years. The estimated value of the output at the company's existing wellhead prices stands at Tk339.07 crore, including Tk285.26 crore for gas and Tk53.81 crore for condensate.
 
At consumer-level gas prices, the estimated value of the gas output over the same period would be Tk6,523.97 crore.
 
BGFCL currently supplies around 480-485 million cubic feet of gas daily to the national grid from five of its six operational gas fields. The Titas Gas Field, the company's largest, produces around 330 million cubic feet daily from 23 of its 28 drilled wells.
 
The project follows a review of three-dimensional seismic survey data collected at the Titas and Bakhrabad gas fields during 2010-2012. BGFCL engaged BGP Inc. of China National Petroleum Corporation to review the data. The consultant recommended drilling 16 infill wells and seven deep wells.
 
The government has prioritised Titas-32 and Titas-33 under its plan to drill 150 onshore gas wells to increase domestic production.
 
The project will cover drilling the two wells through a foreign contractor, engaging local and foreign consultants, installing gas-gathering pipelines and carrying out related works.
 
The Infrastructure Investment Facilitation Company (IIFC) conducted the feasibility study in 2026. The Planning Commission said the project would support domestic gas production, industrial development and foreign exchange savings by reducing LNG imports.