Bangladesh’s gas supply began falling short of demand around 2016. To bridge the gap, the government turned to importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) — a shift written into the Power Sector Master Plan 2016 and the Gas Sector Master Plan 2017. Implementing those blueprints locked the country deeper into import dependence.
Over the past seven years, the state imported more than BDT 2.18 trillion of LNG and channelled roughly BDT 360 billion in subsidies to the gas sector. It had fallen into an import trap: local production could not expand, and exploration withered. Energy experts and economists now regard the gas sector’s master plan as a self-defeating decision.
People familiar with the matter say the plan rested on debt and imports, prioritising private and group interests over the national interest. The gas crisis dragged on, and incremental rises in the once-affordable gas price piled debt onto the sector. Petrobangla, the state energy company, is now borrowing from domestic and foreign lenders to manage the shortfall. It has also already drained the Gas Development Fund, a public fund earmarked for local exploration and drilling.
The recent Middle East conflicts laid bare the threat such import dependence poses to a country’s energy security.
The Gas Sector Master Plan 2017 assumed an annual natural gas deficit of roughly 10 billion cubic metres (equivalent to 7.75 million tonnes of LNG). It charted a course in which LNG would meet 17 percent of total demand in 2018, climbing to 40 percent in 2023, 50 percent in 2028, and 70 percent in 2041 — a phased roadmap for pushing Bangladesh’s gas sector into import dependence.
In the 2024–25 fiscal year, LNG already supplied 29 percent of gas demand. Those imports cost BDT 539.47 billion, and subsidies cost the government a further BDT 89 billion.
Bangladesh began importing liquefied natural gas in 2018 to ease a chronic domestic supply crunch. It bought BDT 118.12 billion of LNG in the 2018–19 fiscal year. Seven years on, the import bill has more than quintupled.
An analysis of the data shows the ousted Awami League government invested very little in domestic gas exploration and extraction. Instead, it expanded LNG imports year after year while neglecting upstream development. A circle of its ministers, civil servants and business allies captured illicit advantage from the import arrangements.
Hasan Mehedi, chief executive of the Coastal Livelihood and Environmental Action Network (CLEAN), told Bonik Barta: “Why did the 2016 power-sector master plan call for building more gas-fired power plants? Why did the 2017 gas-sector master plan stress imports to supply them? The state has built out its gas and power infrastructure in line with those master plans, but gas supply hasn’t kept up. Bangladesh has blundered into a trap. Petrobangla is draining funds and taking on debt — so what benefit have these master plans actually delivered?”
The import-heavy policy suppressed domestic exploration for years. Experts say Bangladesh has mounted no major gas-exploration campaign in nearly two decades. The limited search that did occur failed to meaningfully improve supply management. Domestic gas output has steadily fallen to 1,700 million cubic feet per day, while LNG imports have risen to fill the gap.
Economist Anu Muhammad told Bonik Barta: “Domestic and foreign groups ignored the national interest in Bangladesh’s gas and power sectors. That produced an energy policy built on imports, foreign debt and environmental destruction — it expanded capacity but never built a sustainable system. For 30 years, the National Committee to Protect Oil, Gas, Mineral Resources, Power and Ports has therefore insisted on full state ownership of those resources. Second, the export of oil, gas and coal must be banned outright. Third, the national capacity must be strengthened by protecting those, meaning a push on domestic exploration. Had the government acted appropriately, there would have been no need to import gas or coal.”
Bangladesh imports 5.18 million tonnes of LNG each year, according to Petrobangla. The volume was just above 2 million tonnes when imports began in 2018. Total imports now stand at 36.43 million tonnes, arriving in 588 cargoes under four long-term and two short-term contracts as of March 2026.
Energy expert and geologist Professor Badrul Imam told Bonik Barta: “The country drained away huge sums of foreign exchange while following past plans to address the gas supply crisis. Those plans also called for domestic investment. But how much did we actually make? Scrutiny would show very little.”
He blamed vested interests for the import dependence, adding: “Different quarters had different motives behind the supply crisis and the way the plans were executed. Those involved looted the benefits. The energy sector and the people of this country have borne the cost.”
Against this backdrop of domestic shortage, the ousted Awami League government launched a 50-well drilling programme in 2022, aiming to feed 618 million cubic feet of gas per day into the national grid by 2025. That deadline has passed, and the target remains unmet. Onshore exploration lacked momentum, and neither the ousted government nor the interim government that followed managed to sign a single offshore exploration contract with a foreign company. Observers attribute the long offshore inertia to the policy of import reliance. Petrobangla, however, says it is now pursuing vigorous exploration both on land and at sea.
Petrobangla Chairman Md Erfanul Haque told Bonik Barta: “We’ve set two targets to raise domestic production and reserves. First, the 50-well drilling programme, and second, another 100 wells with workovers by 2028. These initiatives show Petrobangla wants to step back from import dependence. The plan to buy cargoes from the spot market has also been scaled back under this fiscal year’s import target. We’re trying to reduce imports by boosting local output.”
Haque further said that even if the country wanted to import more LNG, it could not: the infrastructure to do so simply does not exist.