Suspension of hard rock extraction creates crisis in mega project completion

Maddhapara Granite Mine Company Ltd (MGMCL) has stopped hard rock extraction from the country's lone rock mine for more than a month  which created serious crisis of building material for the construction work of the Padma Multipurpose Bridge, Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant, the under construction 3rd terminal of the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport and other public installations.
MGMCL, a company of Bangladesh Oil, Gas and Mineral Corporation (Petrobangla) claimed that the lack of ammonium nitrate explosives (which is required to crush stone layers beneath the ground) they have to halt the extraction of hard rock. The company was producing around 5,500 tonnes of hard rock per day to meet the growing demand in different development projects.
"Despite knowing the shortages of explosives Petrobangla and MGMCL were nonchalant, the authority did not take any initiative to procure the explosives just to give benefit to the operator of this field," a senior official of the Energy Division said preferring anonymity.
The production closure has created huge crisis and
increased the amount of import from abroad using hard currency right at the moment.
Earlier, General Manager of MGMCL said the mine has not been receiving adequate ammonium nitrate explosives for the last two years due to Covid-19 pandemic. And said the production could resume by March 27 this year as a consignment of explosives is scheduled to arrive.
"Yes, that was a single consignment, we need continues supply of explosive to run the mine," he added.
As per contract MGMCL is responsible for the mine and the supply of explosives to the mine developer it takes a long time and showed reluctance to collect explosives for the last one year just to ensure some extra benefit to its developer, the official claimed.
The Belarus-based GTC has been operating and maintaining the mine since September 2013 under a deal worth US$171.86 million (equivalent to Tk 1,400 crore). After completion of its tenure, the GTC's contract was extended by a year by the government considering the Covid-19 pandemic situation.
"By this time the Energy Division has taken up a move to ink a fresh contact with the existing operator or a new one through tender process. But that tender had to be shelved due to Covid-19," official added.
MGMCL has renewed the contract with GTC in September last saying that GTC's offer is a "lucrative one" it costs is around $155 million.
"Unfortunately,  the new contract excluded mobilization, non-mobilization cost, insurance waivers to the operator, and now they are going to ensure the facilities of tax and VAT waivers�if we calculate the whole thing than the contract price will be more than $177 million," the official said.
 "This corrupt syndicate wants to capitalise on the crisis situation (shortage of rock) to include all these clauses into the contract which will be increase the cost of MGMCL," official said.
The official also said that although there is no production for last one month but the Managing Director has visited the mine last month as there is a remuneration of Tk 70,000 per visit.
MGMCL said that there is a demand of 1.5 tonnes of explosives every day to produce the hard rock. MGMCL has been sourcing the required explosives from India, China, South-Korea and Thailand. But in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, the supply of explosives was disrupted but what happened now, the official asked.
Padma multipurpose bride, Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant, the under construction 3rd terminal of the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, Bangladesh Railway, Bangladesh Water Development Board, the Public Works Department, local governments and the engineering department are using the rocks as key construction material. The rock is first choice for government projects for its quality and durability and low cost.