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Even Kafco, initially operating at limited capacity, was forced to suspend production late last month due to worsening gas shortages.

BCIC officials said around 197 million cubic feet of gas per day are required to run the five major urea plants at full capacity, underscoring the severity of the supply crunch.

“We have been unable to produce around 7,100 tonnes of fertiliser daily from these plants for the past one and a half months,” BCIC Director (Production and Research) Md Moniruzzaman said.

He added that gas supply to Shahjalal Fertilizer Company Limited and CUFL is expected to resume from May 1.

“Once ammonia production restarts, we expect the DAP plant to receive feedstock and resume operations,” he said.