Govt to procure 27.1 million litres of soybean oil

The government today approved separate proposals for procuring more than 27.1 million litres of soybean oil and some 30,000 metric tonnes of urea fertiliser to meet the growing demand in the country.

The approval came from the 3rd meeting of the Advisers Council Committee on Government Purchase this year, held on Wednesday at the Cabinet Division Conference Room at Bangladesh Secretariat with Finance and Science and Technology Adviser Dr. Salehuddin Ahmed in the chair.

Following a proposal from the Ministry of Commerce, the committee recommended it for procuring 2,71,50,000 litres of refined soybean oil from the international market through the Direct Procurement Method (DPM) from NSRIC Green Supplies, Canada with around Tk 3.57 billion, aiming to ensure adequate domestic supply and stabilise the edible oil market ahead of the Holy Month of Ramadan. Per liter soybean oil will cost Tk 131.49.

The meeting also approved a proposal from the Ministry of Industries to import 30,000 metric tonnes of bagged granular urea fertiliser from Karnaphuli Fertiliser Company Limited (KAFCO) under the 11th lot for the current fiscal year 2025-26, with around Tk 1.49 billion, to meet demand for such a key agricultural input. Under the consignment, per ton of fertiliser would cost $405.25.

In addition to these key import proposals, the committee considered several other agenda items, including the construction of a fertiliser buffer warehouse in Faridpur and Gaibandha, the procurement of high-speed boats for the Bangladesh Coast Guard, and multiple road safety and road connectivity projects across different regions of the country.

The meeting approved a procurement proposal for construction of one fertilizer godown at Faridpur (10,000 MT capacity) with around Tk 484.5 million under Package-2, Lot-3 of the project titled “Construction of 34 Buffer Warehouses at Different Locations Across the Country for Fertilizer Storage and Distribution (1st Revised)” as well as another procurement proposal for construction of one fertilizer godown at Gaibandha (10,000 MT capacity) with around Tk 473.5 million under Package-4, Lot-4 of the same project.

Apart from these, a procurement proposal for the purchase of two large high-speed boats for the Bangladesh Coast Guard under the revenue budget with around Tk 895.0 million was approved in the day’s purchase committee meeting.

In addition, three separate procurement proposals on the “Bangladesh Road Safety” were also approved in the day’s meeting.