The seven-member committee set to submit its report on Sunday believes that the blowout did not cause as much 'internal damage' to the gas reserve as the Magurchhara gas field explosion did.

"The damage mainly took place at a shallow depth. It seems that the tremors that accompanied the blowout were caused by pressure of gas coming out from a shallow depth with tremendous velocity from different points in Tengratila area. But we are not ruling out internal damage, " said a committee member.

Niko Resources will have to pay for the gas loss as well as environmental damage, he said.

An expert team of the environment ministry is assessing the extent of environmental damage.

"The joint venture contract between Niko and Bapex that allowed Niko to work in Tengratila gas field provides that the company will pay for such damage," the committee member pointed out.

"We are still preparing our final report containing our findings and recommendations. But it's beyond our doubt that Niko had taken excessive risk while drilling the Tengratila well," he said.

Niko started drilling in this abandoned field in December last with a target of reaching 1,700 metres. Sources had earlier told The Daily Star that the company did not take proper safety measures and it went on drilling up to 800 metres through the well that had only 300 metres of concrete casing. In case of the Magurchhara blowout, US company Occidental had also resorted to similar faulty operation with smaller concrete casing.

In the evening of January 7, Niko operators first sensed volatile gas pressure when they drilled up to 800 metres. They tried to control the pressure but by next morning, there was an internal explosion in the gas field causing a fire with the flames leaping about 300 feet.

Thousands of people around the field had to leave their homes and they are still living outside their houses in utter miseries.

"Decades ago, Petrobangla used to work with similar risky casing. But it used heavy mudding to control the pressure and thus reduced the risks. But Niko did not go for heavy mudding while using such an old method. And this is wrong," said another probe committee member.

Niko has now installed a rig in Tengratila to start drilling a relief well to seal the damaged gas well and ensure safety of the locality.

Following the disaster, the government on January 9 formed a six-member committee headed by Additional Secretary of the energy ministry Ehsanul Fattah to investigate the blowout.

Members of the committee included Petrobangla Chairman SR Osmani, Strategic Policy Expert of Hydrocarbon Unit Moinul Huq, Managing Director of Sylhet Gas Field Rahman Morshed, and representatives of the environment ministry and Sunamganj district administration.

The committee was earlier scheduled to submit its report by January 20.

The government later changed the deadline to January 30 and put another member on the committee from the BUET.

Niko had committed to invest $15 million in the gas field.

Niko was given this field although it was ring-fenced for future operation of Petrobangla, and US company Unocal had the right to get the call for exploration first as it operates in that area. Niko was found disqualified by Petrobangla's evaluation in the second round block bidding in 1997.

Previously, US company Occidental was found responsible for the Magurchhara blow out but the company was allowed to sell out its concerns to Unocal and leave Bangladesh in 1999 following an extension of its PSC through a supplementary contract.

Petrobangla demanded $685 million in damages from Unocal in 2002 but Unocal is yet to pay anything. Instead, it claimed that the compensation has been "paid" through the supplementary contract. Petrobangla estimates say the field had a gas reserve of over 245 billion cubic feet.