Persistent mechanical failures hit production at Shahjalal fertiliser factory

Mechanical faults continue to afflict the Shahjalal Fertilizer Company Limited (SFCL) in Fenchuganj of Sylhet, leading to recurrent disruptions in production despite the facility having been established with state-of-the-art technology.
Supervised by the Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC), the factory reportedly experiences seven to eight mechanical faults every year, creating persistent challenges for authorities and engineers concerned with its operation.
According to factory sources, gas supply to the plant was suspended for seven consecutive months, from 12 March to 30 September of the current fiscal year, following a government decision. After gas supply resumed on 1 October, all machines in the urea and ammonia sections were restarted, and production began on 10 October.
However, within just 22 hours of operation, a mechanical fault in the ammonia plant forced a shutdown. After repairs, production resumed on 17 October, but the plant was again shut down after 24 hours due to another mechanical failure. Production remained halted for a week before engineers managed to restart operations on 30 October.
According to the factory’s technical department, production activities were interrupted 10 times during the first 10 months of the 2023–24 fiscal year due to mechanical problems. At the beginning of the fiscal year, a major fault in the ammonia plant kept the factory shut for two months and 10 days. Production resumed only after foreign engineers repaired the plant. About six weeks later, another failure in the factory’s captive power plant again halted urea production.
Factory officials have expressed concern that the fertiliser factory may fail to achieve its production target for the current fiscal year due to these repeated disruptions. Earlier, on 8 January 2024, the entire plant was shut down following a software error in the control system of the air compressor of the ammonia gas turbine. Engineers from Italy-based GE Oil and Gas Company later arrived in Fenchuganj and replaced the software after 10 days of work.
The factory has a long history of operational disruptions. On 7 May 2022, production was halted for three days due to the shutdown of an auxiliary boiler at the power plant, which caused a steam shortage. Between July and December of the 2022 fiscal year, the plant was shut down eight times due to mechanical faults. In 2019, production remained suspended for more than a month, from 16 June to 21 July, because of boiler problems and broken turbine blades.
Established in 2010 during the tenure of the previous government under a framework agreement with China, the Shahjalal Fertiliser Factory was designed to produce 580,800 tonnes of urea and 330,000 tonnes of ammonia annually. The project was implemented by the Chinese construction company M/s Complaint, with construction completed in 38 months.
From the outset, allegations surfaced regarding construction flaws, irregularities, and corruption during project implementation. The factory was handed over quickly to BCIC by the builder, M/s Complaint, and the training company, M/s Zhangfu.
The fertiliser factory, built at a cost of Tk4,985 crore, began production on 14 August 2016. It was capable of producing 1,760 tonnes of urea fertiliser per day but had been producing around 1,450 tonnes daily. The factory also produced liquid ammonia as a by-product. Despite the high hopes, the factory has not yet turned a profit. 
Workers and employees have said prolonged shutdowns cause further deterioration of equipment, making it difficult and time-consuming to resume production. 
Shambhu Lal Das, general manager (Technical) of Shahjalal Fertiliser Factory, stated that the factory was initially shut down due to the absence of a gas connection and was later forced to suspend operations because of mechanical failures. He added that the factory is currently in operation.