Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of Bangladesh Mohammad Shahriar Alam while he was in Qatar. Pic: Abdul Basit / The Peninsula
DOHA: Bangladesh is looking to the active participation of Qatar in its upcoming offshore blocks bidding. The country’s Minister urged Qatar to explore the investment opportunities in Bangladesh’s huge potential in offshore oil and gas blocks.
Bangladesh has 22 oil and gas blocks in the Bay of Bengal. Of these, tenders have been awarded to five and Qatar can play a big role in the explorations in the remaining blocks, Mohammad Shahriar Alam, State Minister, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bangladesh, told The Peninsula.
Speaking on the sidelines of ‘Foreign Direct Investment in Bangladesh’ seminar here, Shahriar Alam said the country has not been able to award offshore blocks for exploration for a long time. The settlement of maritime boundary disputes with neighbouring countries has offered Bangladesh a huge area to explore hydrocarbon resources. Offshore blocks could be a driving force for Bangladesh’s development. It’s a big opportunity for Qatar, which has huge expertise in developing offshore projects, to become part of Bangladesh’s growth story. Qatar can develop and undertake commercial projects.
“The neighbouring Myanmar has already started extracting oil and gas from deep sea and it is the same sea that we are sharing,” he said.
Shahriar Alam said Bangladesh is looking for $60bn worth of foreign investments by 2041 to develop the country’s energy, power and petroleum products sectors. There is huge potential for collaboration between the two brotherly countries and Bangladesh is keen to partner with Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund Qatar Investment Authority (QIA).
The Minister said Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA), a body under the Prime Minister’s Office, will be extending a formal invitation to QIA to send a delegation to Bangladesh to get direct information about the huge investment potential in the country.
The BIDA will also work on a plan to host a possible Qatar-Bangladesh Investment Forum in Dhaka by early next year, he said.
Kazi M Aminul Islam, Executive Chairman, BIDA said with growing markets and innovative entrepreneurship, Bangladesh offers unique business opportunities for foreign investors.
Huge opportunities are available in the power generation, infrastructure, ICT, agro business and pharma sector. The market can offer enormous opportunities of high return and low risk investments in infrastructures, utilities, manufacturing and in consumer goods industries.
Risk factor of FDI is the minimum in Bangladesh. The country has never defaulted in its debt repayments, nor asked for their rescheduling and the country has never posted negative economic growth during the past 30 years. The country’s power sector is committed to providing 100 percent access to electricity to people by 2021.
Bangladesh is a winning combination of privileged market, access business-friendly environment and competitive cost structure that can give investors best returns.
Qatar can also tap the huge private sector investment opportunities.
For instance, it can invest 100 percent in the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) or invest as a joint with local/ foreign partners. It can also set up a mega power plants with the support of NEBRAS.
