Half-day hartal in Dhaka on July 3

Dhaka, June 18 (bdnews24.com) ? The National Committee on Protection of Oil, Gas and Mineral Resources, Power and Ports has called a half-day hartal in Dhaka for July 3, demanding cancellation of the deal signed with ConocoPhilliphs.

Committee member-secretary Anu Muhammad declared the hartal programme at a press conference at Mukti Bhaban, Purana Paltan in the city around 11am on Saturday.

A production-sharing contract (PSC) deal was signed between the government and ConocoPhillips on Thursday, allowing the company to start lifting gas from two blocks in the Bay of Bengal.

At the press conference, Muhammad announced a series of programmes to be held from June 20 to July 3 in protest against the deal.

The committee, he said, would stage long marches in different upazilas of the country from June 21 to July 1.

Muhammad said the committee would exchange opinions with people from different walks of life, students and youths from June 20 and July 2.

Apart from enforcing the half-day shutdown in the city, the citizens' forum will also demonstrate in front of the deputy commissioners' offices across the country on July 3, Muhammad said.

On the day (July 3), the committee will form human chains carrying banners, festoons and placards alongside main roads in the upazilas and unions throughout the country.

ConocoPhillips was chosen to conduct its seismic surveys in blocks 10 and 11 as per an international tender in line with a model PSC-2008 formulated during the last caretaker government.

The final go-ahead for inking the PSC was given on May 23 by the cabinet committee on economic affairs.

The oil-gas protection committee has been opposing the deal from the very beginning.

Besides, an MP, several leftist parties and fuel experts gave speeches and issued statements against the deal.

They said Bangladesh would own 20 percent of the gas and it would have to buy the rest 80 percent at a certain rate according to the PSC.

If Bangladesh fails to import the rest of the gas amount, ConocoPhillips could export it elsewhere.

In the deal signing programme, finance minister A M A Muhith, however, said the deal protected the national interest.

According to the deal, ConocoPhillips will be authorised to operate its seismic surveys and lift gas in sea blocks 11 and 12, an area of 5,158 square kilometres.

The two blocks, some 280 km away from Chittagong Port, are about 1-1.5 km deep.

ConocoPhillips will ensure a bank guarantee of $160 million in the nine-year deal, conditioned to operate surveys and excavation at three stages.

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