Govt to buy 1cr litres of soybean oil, 10,000 tonnes of lentils for subsidised sale

Bangla Press Desk: The government has approved the procurement of one crore litres of refined soybean oil and 10,000 tonnes of lentils for sale at subsidised prices to low-income households under the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) programme.

The decision was taken on Tuesday at a meeting of the Advisers Council Committee on Government Purchase, chaired by Finance Adviser Dr Salehuddin Ahmed, at the Secretariat. The total cost of the procurement will be Tk257 crore.

According to meeting sources, the Ministry of Commerce placed a proposal to purchase one crore litres of refined soybean oil through an open domestic tender process for distribution among TCB Smart Family Card holders. The committee approved the proposal.

The soybean oil will be procured in 10 lots of one million litres each. Super Oil Refinery Limited submitted bids for lots one to five, while Shabnam Vegetable Industries Limited bid for lots six to ten. 

Both bidders were found to be technically and financially responsive.

Following the recommendation of the Tender Evaluation Committee, the government decided to purchase 50 lakh litres from Super Oil Refinery Limited at Tk185.95 per litre, amounting to Tk92.97 crore, and another 50 lakh litres from Shabnam Vegetable Industries Limited at Tk185.90 per litre, costing Tk92.95 crore. The total cost for the soybean oil procurement stands at Tk186 crore.

For the 2025-26 fiscal year, the government has set a target of procuring 23 crore litres of edible oil. Contracts have so far been signed for 2.55 crore litres.

The committee also approved the purchase of 10,000 tonnes of lentils through an open domestic tender. The procurement was divided into 10 lots of 1,000 tonnes each, against which 29 bids were submitted. KBC AgroProducts Private Limited emerged as the lowest responsive bidder for all lots.

Under the approved proposal, 10,000 tonnes of lentils, packed in 50-kilogram bags, will be procured from KBC Agro Products at Tk70.96 per kilogram, at a total cost of Tk70.96 crore.

Officials said the procurement aims to ensure adequate stocks of essential commodities for subsidised distribution. For the current fiscal year, the government has set a target of procuring 230,000 tonnes of lentils. So far, contracts have been finalised for 32,000 tonnes, while TCB warehouses currently hold 5,986 tonnes. An estimated 64,500 tonnes of lentils will be required for distribution between January and April this year.

BP/SP