April 21, 2026 | 02:32 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Bangladesh is facing widespread mobile network shutdowns without a rapid fix in the fuel shortage caused by the Middle East war, operators said on Monday.
The South Asian country with a population of 170 million imports 95 percent of its oil and gas, mostly from the Middle East, and the fuel shortage has had a severe impact, with queues at gas stations lasting up to 12 hours.
The Association of Mobile Telecommunications Operators of Bangladesh (AMTOB) said on Monday that sustainable telecommunications operations cannot be maintained without the fuel needed to run operations, including data centers.
"The situation has escalated beyond the operational control," AMTOB wrote in a letter to the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) as reported by CNA.
The organization warned of "large-scale" telecommunication network shutdown in "most parts" of Bangladesh if the situation showed no signs of improving.
It is said that the impact has already begun.
"Mobile network operators (MNOs) are experiencing severe operational distress due to the prolonged unavailability of commercial power and the lack of assured fuel supply for backup systems," it said.
It was mentioned that data centers consume about 500-600 liters of diesel per hour, or nearly 4,000 liters per day per facility, which cannot be fulfilled by local fueling stations.
"Multiple strategically vital telecom facilities are currently running on dangerously low fuel reserves," the association said.
Network Shutdown
AMTOB Secretary-General Mohammad Zulfikar said that the closure of data centers would create a domino effect across a wider network.
"A partial or complete network blackout could bring calls, internet, SMS (text messages) and all other services to a standstill or cause severe disruption," he said.
"The internet may become painfully slow or go down entirely, as data centers are the command hubs where traffic is routed and controlled."
The government raised fuel prices on Saturday, including a 15 percent increase in diesel prices, from 100 to 115 taka per liter, and a 16 percent increase in petrol prices, from 116 to 135 taka per liter.
Energy Minister Iqbal Hasan Mahmud told reporters on Sunday that Bangladesh had to raise prices due to the global crisis.
Depots were instructed to supply more fuel to gas stations at the revised prices, but so far, the impact has been minimal.
A driver, Zakir Mia, said it took him 16 hours on Sunday to fill up his car. "People in the queue had to spend 10-12 hours at fuel stations," he said.
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