DHAKA, Nov 9, 2023 (BSS) - Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is scheduled to inaugurate the country's largest Ghorashal-Polash Urea Fertiliser Factory on November 12 (Sunday).

"The Industries Ministry is working relentlessly to make Bangladesh an industrially developed country. As part of its different time-befitting initiatives, the ministry has constructed the country's largest fertiliser factory. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will inaugurate it on November 12," said Senior Secretary of the Industries Ministry Zakia Sultana.

The secretary today said this while speaking at a press conference marking the inauguration of Gorashal-Polash Fertilizer Factory at the Industries Ministry conference room in the city.

In her speech, Zakia Sultana said the fertiliser factory will play a leading role in meeting the increasing demand for urea fertiliser, ensuring supply of fertiliser to farmers at affordable prices, saving foreign currency by reducing imports and creating employment opportunities.

"The Ministry of Industries is working tirelessly to achieve economic prosperity through the implementation of 'Vision 2041' and 'Smart Bangladesh' announced by the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina," she added.

She informed that as per the instruction of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in 2014, the Industries Ministry took an initiative to set up a new granular urea fertilizer factory at the place of the existing two fertilizer factories - Urea Fertilizer Factory Limited (UFFL) and Polash Urea Fertilizer Factory Limited (PUFFL) under Narsingdi district.

Under the initiative, she said, the ministry took the 'Ghorashal Polash Urea Fertilizer Project'.

 Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) has implemented the project at a cost of around Taka 15,500.21 crore, she mentioned.

Out of the total project cost, Taka 4,580.21 crore came from the government exchequer while Taka 10,920 crore from Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFG Limited (MUFG) and the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited (HSBC) as commercial loan, she added.

Zakia Sultana also informed that Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Limited (MHI) and China National Chemical Engineering No 7 Construction Co Ltd (CC-7) jointly constructed the factory, which will have an annual production capacity of 9.24 lakh metric tons.

She mentioned that the per day production capacity of the new factory is about three times higher than that of the earlier two fertiliser factories.

Explaining further the environmental issues, she said it is the first fertilizer factory in Bangladesh where the environmental pollutant Carbon-Di-Oxide (CO2) will be captured from the primary reformer flue gas and the production of urea fertilizer will be increased (about 10pc ) by using the captured CO2.

Zakia Sultana said this is "modern, sophisticated, energy efficient and green" fertilizer factory in the country which will reduce the import of urea fertilizer and save hard-earned foreign currency.