Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen told parliament today that the prolongation of ongoing Russia-Ukraine war would increase the cost of transportation and agricultural production in the country due to further rise in fuel prices in the global market.
The foreign minister was responding to a question from Awami League MP Shafiul Islam.
The question-answer session scheduled for the ministers in today’s House sitting was tabled with Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury in the chair.
The foreign minister said the price of oil per barrel is now the highest in the last nine years.
Bangladesh currently imports 50 lakh tonnes of diesel, 13 lakh tonnes of crude oil, 2 lakh tonnes of furnace oil and 1.20 lakh tonnes of octane every year, Momen said in a scripted answer.
Now at the price at which Bangladesh is buying fuel oil and selling it in its own market, it has to incur a loss of over $15 crore every day.
The Foreign Minister said that although Bangladesh did not import much wheat from Russia and Ukraine, the supply would be affected due to the global market situation.
“If the war continues, there is a risk of increase in freight and insurance fees for cargo ships.”
He said the ban on a number of banks in the Swift system for global interbank transactions had led to various Bangladeshi companies having agreements with Russia to be careful about paying their dues.
“Because if you pay through a bank under the ban, it may get stuck in the middle. It may not be possible to recover the money,” the minister also said.
The foreign minister said the Rooppur nuclear power plant construction project could be adversely affected.
He said, in 2018, Bangladesh inked $1,138 crore loan agreement with Russia for the construction of this power plant.
“The money coming from this loan is mainly through the US Federal Reserve Bank. Because Bangladesh wants to borrow money in dollars instead of rubles. Western sanctions on Russia’s central bank could complicate this transaction. Discussions are underway between Russia and Bangladesh on what could be an alternative approach to financing and repaying loans for ongoing projects,” Momen said.
