Special Correspondent

Drowning in irregularities and corruption, the nearly defunct Standard Asiatic Oil Company Ltd. (SAOCL) has started to bounce back. Under the leadership of the company’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Moni Lal Dash, business is steadily expanding, and profits are increasing. Over a few years, capital has risen from 90 million to 1.5 billion BDT, and the CEO is optimistic that recovering misappropriated funds will make the company even more viable.

The company, co-owned by Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC), nearly collapsed after former General Manager Mohammad Shahed and his cousins, Md. Mahmudul Haque and Moin Uddin, embezzled 3.16 billion BDT. However, due to the skills and insight of current CEO Moni Lal Dash, the energy marketing company has been revived from life support. After Shahed’s syndicate’s irregularities were uncovered in March 2021, 124 workers were laid off. In November of that year, BPC took the initiative to revive the nearly defunct SAOCL.

Moni Lal Dash, who was serving as General Manager (Finance) at BPC, was appointed CEO. He began working with only 91.7 million BDT in capital, immense determination, and relentless effort. Despite severe financial challenges, Dash and his team worked tirelessly to turn the situation around. With no business or sufficient capital to operate, they did not lose hope. They started importing small amounts of lube oil and selling it. Gradually, capital began to grow, and business expanded. Marketing initiatives were launched, and sales of diesel and furnace oil began. In 2021, when 109 workers were laid off due to financial constraints, within a year, 127 workers were rehired.

The company’s capital has now exceeded 1.5 billion BDT. In addition to selling large quantities of diesel and furnace oil, SAOCL has earned a good reputation by selling various products under the “Lubzone” brand, such as engine oil, gear oil, CNG engine oil, industrial motorcycle gear oil, machine oil, and international standard modern grease.

Regarding the situation, SAOCL’s CEO Moni Lal Dash stated, “The company was almost dead, but with our collective effort and sincerity, it has recovered. Within a year of my appointment, we now have capital close to 1.5 billion BDT, which we are managing effectively. I hope that the company’s tarnished image will be restored, and it will regain its reputation. For this, everyone’s sincere cooperation is needed.” Speaking about the misappropriated funds, he mentioned, “Our monthly expenses for employee salaries and related costs amount to about 13.5 million BDT. We are fighting legal battles to recover the embezzled funds. Several cases are ongoing. We have already recovered 2.8 million BDT for two elevators and the money from bitumen sales. If we can recover the remaining embezzled funds, the company will become even more active and transform into a profitable enterprise.