DHAKA — Bangladesh is poised to sign deals to buy more US liquefied natural gas (LNG), the American ambassador to the country, Brent Christensen, said in an interview in Dhaka, as the Trump administration pushes to expand energy exports, Bloomberg reported on Friday, October 30. Several LNG sales proposals are in various stages of the approval process with the Bangladeshi government, and agreements to buy liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) could follow, he said.

Source: Bloomberg via EnergyConnects

"We think there are going to be several more deals signed soon," Christensen told Bloomberg. The push comes as Bangladesh grapples with a fuel shortfall: the Middle East war has choked LNG shipments from Qatar, the country's main supplier, behind the Strait of Hormuz, forcing buyers across Asia to hunt for alternatives.

Source: Bloomberg via EnergyConnects

$10 billionUS estimate of the value of Bangladesh's LNG market next year, according to Ambassador Christensen — yaani about 1,000 crore dollars
$30 billionwhat that market could grow to by 2050, Christensen said — yaani about 3,000 crore dollars
May 2026when Washington and Dhaka signed the energy cooperation memorandum that frames these deals

Washington and Dhaka signed an energy cooperation memorandum in May that created a framework for US companies to take part in government-to-government procurement of LNG and other energy. The US-based unit of Centalion Group Ltd. — the trading house formerly known as Gunvor — used that framework to cement a deal to sell American LNG to Bangladesh for more than a decade starting this year, Bloomberg reported. Chevron Corp., the biggest gas producer in Bangladesh, is also looking to expand, and energy-equipment provider GE Vernova Inc. is keen to do more business in the country, Christensen said.

Source: Bloomberg via EnergyConnects

The ambassador pressed the same energy message in person this week: speaking to business leaders in Chattogram on October 28, Christensen said Bangladesh and the United States had signed a memorandum of understanding on LNG supply to strengthen energy cooperation, and urged Dhaka to cut red tape and cargo delays to attract foreign investment, The Business Standard reported. He also noted opportunities in nuclear technology, including small modular reactors.

Source: The Business Standard

The urgency is driven from the Gulf side. QatarEnergy has extended its force majeure on LNG deliveries until the end of the year, and a Petrobangla source told Reuters the extension also covers price-sensitive buyers in South Asia, including Bangladesh — whose officials are seeking extra spot cargoes at a sharply higher cost. What happens next is whether Dhaka converts the American proposals now in its approval pipeline into signed contracts, and on what price terms, before winter demand peaks.