Bangladesh’s long-awaited Single Point Mooring (SPM) project is moving closer to full-scale operation with the signing of a five-year operation and maintenance (O&M) agreement with an Indonesian state-owned company, raising hopes of a major reduction in the time and cost involved in handling imported fuel oil.
Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) signed the agreement worth Tk1,946 crore with PT Pertamina Trans Kontinental on Thursday at its liaison office in Dhaka.
The Indonesian company will operate and maintain the country’s first SPM facility with a double pipeline system at Moheshkhali in Cox’s Bazar.
Once fully operational, the SPM project is expected to save the government Tk500-600 crore annually in fuel oil unloading and transportation costs, according to the BPC.
BPC Chairman Md Rafiqul Islam attended the signing ceremony as chief guest.
Muhammad Asadul Haque, director (Planning) of BPC, signed the agreement on behalf of the corporation, while Harris Abdi Sembiring Meliala, president director of PT Pertamina Trans Kontinental, signed for the Indonesian company, read a press release.
Indonesian Ambassador to Bangladesh Listyowati, representatives of the Energy and Mineral Resources Division, BPC directors and other senior officials were also present.
The Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase approved the appointment of PT Pertamina Trans Kontinental as the SPM operator in September 2026, paving the way for the five-year O&M agreement.
With an estimated investment of Tk8,300 crore, the SPM project was undertaken to overcome longstanding inefficiencies in transporting imported crude oil and diesel from mother vessels to shore-based storage facilities and refineries.
Currently, large oil tankers carrying imported fuel cannot directly unload their cargo at Chattogram port facilities. Instead, the oil is transferred to smaller lighter vessels at designated offshore points before being transported to shore.
The conventional lighterage system is both time-consuming and expensive, involving additional handling, transportation costs and risks of system losses.
According to the BPC, unloading 100,000 tonnes of oil through the conventional lighterage system takes around 10-12 days.
The SPM system is expected to bring a dramatic change to this process.
Once fully operational, it will be possible to transfer 100,000 tonnes of crude oil to the Eastern Refinery in Patenga within approximately 48 hours. Similarly, around 70,000 tonnes of diesel can be transferred in about 28 hours.
The facility will allow large oil tankers to discharge imported petroleum products through an offshore mooring arrangement connected to shore-based facilities by a double pipeline system, reducing dependence on multiple lighter vessels.
The project is expected to significantly reduce unloading time, lighterage expenses, fuel handling losses and international demurrage payments incurred when oil tankers remain at sea for extended periods.
