The cabinet committee on government purchase has approved a proposal to buy 90,000 tonnes of bagged granular urea fertiliser for Tk 469,92,61,500.

The virtual meetings of the cabinet committee on economic affairs and the cabinet committee on government purchase were held on the afternoon of Sunday, October 17, chaired by finance minister AHM Mustafa Kamal. Afterwards, cabinet division additional secretary Md Samsul Arefin briefed journalists on various matters.

Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) will buy 30,000 tonnes of bagged granular urea in the sixth lot from Karnaphuli Fertilizer Company Limited (KAFCO), at $601 a tonne, for Tk 154,24,66,500.

The purchase committee also approved BCIC importing, under state-to-state agreements, 30,000 tonnes of bulk granular urea in the sixth lot from Qatar's Muntaj and 30,000 tonnes in the seventh lot from Saudi Basic Industries Corporation. The fertiliser will be bought at $615 a tonne, and the 60,000 tonnes will cost Tk 315,67,95,000.

The committee also approved the Central Medical Stores Depot (CMSD) buying 20 lakh coronavirus test kits in three lots for Tk 117.41 crore.

It approved the Payra Port Authority buying two 70-tonne bollard pull tugboats, with the necessary equipment and services, from Khulna Shipyard for Tk 131,73,41,896.

The purchase committee also approved extending the existing agreement to import 160 megawatts of electricity from Tripura in India.

The committee approved a proposal to set up a 660-megawatt gas- or RLNG-based combined cycle gas turbine power plant at Meghnaghat, Jamaldi, in Gazaria upazila of Munshiganj. The Bangladesh Power Development Board will implement the project from its own funds over 22 years at a cost of Tk 69,165.36 crore. The project will start in 2026, and the agreement will be made on that basis.

The purchase committee approved tenders for printing, binding and supplying free Bangla- and English-version textbooks for classes three, four and five for the 2022 academic year in five lots. The National Curriculum and Textbook Board will print the books for Tk 8,06,64,830.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.