Chittagong Urea Fertilizer Limited

Chittagong Urea Fertilizer Limited is a urea fertilizer company in Chittagong and is owned by the state owned Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation.[1]

Chittagong Urea Fertilizer Limited
Formation1987
HeadquartersChittagong District, Bangladesh
Region served
Bangladesh
Official language
Bengali
WebsiteChittagong Urea Fertilizer Limited

History edit

Chittagong Urea Fertilizer Limited was built in 1987 in Rangadia, Anwara Upazila, Chittagong District, Bangladesh. It was built by the Japanese Toyo Engineering Corporation. The factory has a capacity to produce 1700 tonnes of urea and 1000 tonnes of ammonia per day.[2][3]

On 31 January 2015, the factory was closed by the government of Bangladesh after the reactor and cooling tower were damaged. The contract for the repair work was given to AXO Welding, an Italian company.[4] The factory was reopened on 7 July 2017 after 400 million taka was spent on repairs. The gas to the factory was supplied by Karnaphuli Gas Distribution Company Limited.[5] Production was suspended again on 22 December 2017 due to gas shortages and resumed on 13 September 2018, in part due to liquefied natural gas.[2]

The factory is closed during summer to divert natural gas to home consumers like most state owned fertilizer companies in Bangladesh. The factory cannot produce at optimal level due to gas shortages and as a result incurs monthly losses of up to 100 million taka.[4] The Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation can produce 1.9 million metric ton of fertilizers against the demand for 2.5 million metric ton.[6] The factory has also been blamed for the pollution of Karnaphuli River.[7]

Arms trafficking edit

In 2004, elements of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party government of Bangladesh with the aid of Pakistani intelligence agency, tried to smuggle guns through the jetty of Chittagong Urea Fertilizer Limited. The case became known as the 10-Truck Arms and Ammunition Haul in Chittagong. The arms were destined for separatists groups in India. The accused included government ministers and heads of Bangladeshi intelligence agency.[8][9][10][11]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Chittagong-Urea-Fertilizer-Ltd". bcic.gov.bd. Retrieved 25 December 2018.
  2. ^ a b "Industries get new life for LNG". New Age. Retrieved 25 December 2018.
  3. ^ Patel, Surendra J. (2018). Technological Transformation in the Third World: Volume 1: Asia. Routledge. ISBN 9781351110051. Retrieved 25 December 2018.
  4. ^ a b "Chittagong Urea Fertiliser Ltd goes on overhauling". observerbd.com. Retrieved 25 December 2018.
  5. ^ "Production at Ctg Urea Fertilizer Factory resumes". theindependentbd.com. Retrieved 25 December 2018.
  6. ^ "CUFL, Jamuna fertilizer to start production next month". Daily Sun. Retrieved 25 December 2018.
  7. ^ "Karnaphuli pollution proves fatal for marine fisheries in Bay". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 25 December 2018.
  8. ^ "Arms, ammo made in China". The Daily Star. 8 April 2013. Retrieved 25 December 2018.
  9. ^ "Babar prevented DGFI probe". The Daily Star. 16 March 2012. Retrieved 25 December 2018.
  10. ^ Mahanta, Nani Gopal (2013). Confronting the State: ULFA's Quest for Sovereignty. SAGE Publications India. p. 241. ISBN 9788132113270.
  11. ^ Raghavan, V. R. (2013). Internal Conflicts- A Four State Analysis: India-Nepal-Sri Lanka-Myanmar. Vij Books India Pvt Ltd. p. 85. ISBN 9789382573418.