TWO of the six public gas distributors claim system gains, noting that they have sold more gas than they have purchased. The other four public gas distributors are reported to have been plagued by high system losses. The gainers claim an advantage in the ranges of 1.4鈥�1.44 per cent whilst, as the February data show, the average system loss has been 6.68 per cent for others. Yet, Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company, which distributes a half of gas consumed, 2,600mmcfd on an average, reports to have faced a system loss of 9.21 per cent after a significant improvement in its performance compared with the figure the month before, when the system loss of the company was 10.53 per cent. The global standard of system loss remains 2 per cent. Energy experts, however, say that both the system loss that the distribution companies face and the system gain that the distribution companies claim are nothing but the stealing of gas, inefficiency of government officials and irregularities of the distribution companies. The loss and the gain are an indication of a deliberate manipulation of the transmission and distribution systems rather than technical problems.
In addition to Titas Gas reporting system loss in February, the three other entities that report system loss are Bakhrabad Gas Distribution Company, Jalalabad Gas Transmission and Distribution System and Karnaphuli Gas Distribution Company. Viewed against the global standard of system loss, the four entities are definitely plagued by irregularities as they have reported loss that is much higher in February compared with the figures the month before even after improvement in their performances. But the case of Sundarban Gas Company that has reported a 1.44 per cent system gain and Pashchimanchal Gas Company that has reported a 1.4 per cent system gain appear curious. No company can sell gas more than what it buys from Gas Transmission Company. The catch, therefore, lies elsewhere. The distribution companies buy gas from Gas Transmission Company at the maximum pressure of 150 pounds per square inch, but industries and captive power plants get the gas at 15psi. Commercial entities and households receive gas at only 0.5psi, which often declines to 0psi at the consumer end. A reduction in pressure allows gas to expand, increasing its volume, the only unit by which the supply is measured in billing customers. Factors such as temperature, pressure and molecular elements, which the transmission company maintains, are ignored, making the apparent gain, which is nothing but fraudulence.
The authorities should, therefore, take note of the illegal activities and stop the fraudulence that gas distribution companies employ to make gains or fail to deal with, adding to system loss.
