Govt to Buy 155,000 Tonnes of Fertiliser from Saudi Arabia, Canada and Russia

To meet the country’s growing demand for fertiliser, the Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase (CCGP) has approved four proposals to import 155,000 metric tonnes of fertiliser from Saudi Arabia, Canada and Russia through state-to-state and government-to-government (G2G) arrangements. The total cost to the government will be Tk 982 crore 61 lakh 24 thousand 700. Of the total amount, 80,000 metric tonnes of muriate of potash (MOP) fertiliser will be imported from Canada and 35,000 metric tonnes of MOP from Russia. Another 40,000 metric tonnes of diammonium phosphate (DAP) fertiliser will be imported from Saudi Arabia.

The proposals from the Ministry of Agriculture were approved at a meeting of the CCGP held at the Secretariat on Wednesday, chaired by Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury. As the finance minister was abroad, he joined the meeting online. The Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC) will implement the proposals. The cost of importing the fertiliser will be paid from the budget allocated for agricultural subsidies.

80,000 Tonnes of MOP from Canada

The meeting approved two proposals to import MOP fertiliser from the Canadian Commercial Corporation (CCC) of Canada under the G2G arrangement. A total of 40,000 metric tonnes of MOP will be imported in the third lot and another 40,000 metric tonnes in the fourth lot. Each lot will cost Tk 189 crore 67 lakh 39 thousand 600. Therefore, the total cost of importing 80,000 metric tonnes of MOP in the two lots will be Tk 379 crore 34 lakh 79 thousand 200.

According to the proposals, the price of MOP fertiliser has been set at $383.80 per metric tonne. The import value of fertiliser in each of the third and fourth lots is $15.352 million, equivalent to Tk 189 crore 67 lakh 39 thousand 600. BADC’s proposal to import MOP fertiliser from Canada under the G2G arrangement had earlier received in-principle approval from the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs. As the previous contract had been completed, the contract was renewed on August 13 with the committee’s approval.
Following the pricing formula specified in the contract, the prices of fertiliser for the third and fourth lots were determined based on current international market prices.

For the 2026-27 fiscal year, BADC has set a target of importing 716,000 metric tonnes of MOP fertiliser. Of this, 600,000 metric tonnes are planned to be imported from Canada. So far, the CCGP has approved the import of 80,000 metric tonnes of MOP fertiliser from Canada.

Another 35,000 Tonnes of MOP from Russia

A proposal to import 35,000 (+10 percent) metric tonnes of MOP fertiliser in the seventh lot from Russia’s JSC Foreign Economic Corporation (Prodintorg) under a state-level agreement was also approved. The cost will be Tk 165 crore 89 lakh 75 thousand 500. The total import value of the fertiliser is $13.433 million. The price of MOP fertiliser has been set at $383.80 per metric tonne. The proposal to import MOP fertiliser from Russia had earlier received in-principle approval from the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs. As the previous contract had been completed, the contract was renewed on May 24.

According to the pricing formula specified in the contract, the price of fertiliser for the seventh lot of the 2026-27 fiscal year was determined based on current international market prices. For the current fiscal year, BADC’s target is to import 716,000 metric tonnes of MOP fertiliser. Of this, the target for imports from Russia is 595,000 metric tonnes. So far, 175,000 metric tonnes of MOP fertiliser have already been imported from Russia.

40,000 Tonnes of DAP from Saudi Arabia

A proposal to import 40,000 (+10 percent) metric tonnes of DAP fertiliser in the fourth lot of 2026 from Saudi Arabia’s Ma’aden under a state-level agreement was also approved. The government will spend Tk 437 crore 36 lakh 70 thousand on the import. The total import value of the fertiliser is $35.4 million. The price of DAP fertiliser has been set at $885 per metric tonne. BADC imports DAP fertiliser from Saudi Arabia under a state-level agreement. On December 15, 2024, BADC signed an agreement with Saudi Arabia’s Ma’aden for the import of DAP fertiliser for 2025 and 2026.

Under the pricing formula specified in that agreement, the price of fertiliser for the fourth lot was determined based on current international market prices. The proposal was placed before the CCGP meeting for approval on a retrospective basis. For the 2026-27 fiscal year, the target for DAP fertiliser imports is 991,000 metric tonnes. Of this, 600,000 metric tonnes will be imported from Saudi Arabia.

Total Cost Nearly Tk 983 Crore

Of the four proposals, the import of 80,000 metric tonnes of MOP fertiliser from Canada in two lots will cost Tk 379 crore 34 lakh 79 thousand 200. The import of 35,000 metric tonnes of MOP fertiliser from Russia will cost Tk 165 crore 89 lakh 75 thousand 500. The import of 40,000 metric tonnes of DAP fertiliser from Saudi Arabia will cost Tk 437 crore 36 lakh 70 thousand. In total, the government will spend Tk 982 crore 61 lakh 24 thousand 700 to import 155,000 metric tonnes of fertiliser. The cost of importing the fertiliser will be paid from the budget allocated for agricultural subsidies.

The recommendations were made at the committee’s 30th meeting of the year held on Wednesday. Two proposals from the Ministry of Industries were also presented, discussed and recommended for approval at the meeting. Under the first proposal, in-principle approval was recommended for an amendment to the existing G2G agreement with Fertiglobe Distribution Limited of the United Arab Emirates. Through the amendment, Bangladesh will have the option to purchase bulk granular urea fertiliser on a cost-and-freight (CFR) basis in addition to the existing free-on-board (FOB) arrangement during the 2026-27 fiscal year.