Three multinational banks have offered US$250 million loans to the Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) as hard term credits.

A consortium of three banks — HSBC, Standard Chartered and Citi Bank —offered the loan proposal to BPC for importing petroleum fuel with a 5.3 percent interest rate, a senior official of the Energy and Mineral Resources Division told daily sun.

“The consortium of the banks tagged a condition of paying an advance payment of 0.87 percent, which is so high,” he said.

Besides, they also showed their interests to arrange a road show regarding the loan, according to him.

The government, recently, got an Islamic Development Bank loan with an interest rate of 5.3 percent, he said, but it advance payment is only 0.07 percent.

The Energy and Mineral Resources Division will write a letter to the consortium to reduce advance payment and withdraw the condition of arranging the road-show, he said.

“If these banks could not withdraw the conditions then it would be difficult to gain approval from the hard term loan committee,” he said.

The government, last week, approved nearly Tk 15 billion to Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) as subsidy.

The BPC required Tk 44.30 billion for importing over six million tonnes of fuel in the present calendar year, BPC chairman Md Muktadir Ali said.

“We have a requirement of Tk 17.30 billion between March and December this year while it would require Tk 26 billion from July to December next,” he said.

The consumption of petroleum fuel rose to over six million tonnes this calendar year, BPC chairman Md Muqtadir Ali told daily sun.

“We have a target of petroleum consumption of 4 million tonnes diesel, 1.8 million tonnes of furnace oil and over half million tonnes of petrol, octane and jet fuel,” he said.

News: Daily Sun/ Bangladesh/ 13-Apr-2011