The Indian industrial giant also sought government guarantee for buying its power and fertiliser for 30 years.

Bangladesh officials at the meetings with Tata representatives yesterday disagreed on the proposals and said these issues would be decided after discussion with the ministerial committee on Tata investment.

Tata sources said their officials found the government procurement system a lengthy and cumbersome one, which they would not like in case of selling their product to the government.

Three separate meetings at the Ministry of Industries, Petrobangla and Power Development Board (PDB) were held yesterday. Bangladesh officials tagged fixing Tata's power and fertiliser tariff with the government's coal and gas prices.

"We want to maintain an equitability for gaining a win-win situation with industrial giant Tata Group in fixing the tariff of gas and coal as well as fertiliser and power," said a government high official, who led the team at one meeting.

The prices could not be fixed before the receipt of the government-recruited consultant's report, he told The Daily Star, seeking anonymity.

At the meeting with PDB officials, Tata representatives proposed using the agreement for power purchase from Meghnaghat plant as an yardstick for power purchase from Tata. But the PDB team disagreed with them saying that Meghnaghat plant is a gas-fired one while Tata plans setting up two coal-based power plants.

At the Petrobangla meeting, Tata officials demanded construction of a gas pipeline from Chittagong to the proposed fertiliser factory with the government funding it.

They also proposed to relocate its fertiliser plant from Banshkhali to some other area as Banshkhali is too far from a river jetty.

"Earlier, we did not consider this aspect. So, we now want to relocate our fertiliser factory from Banshkhali as it is located around 18 kilometres from a jetty," a Tata official said.

The government side agreed on the relocation and suggested to Tata two other places for its fertiliser factory.

The Tata team at its meeting at the industries ministry sought government guarantee for 30 years for procuring its fertiliser, and an international trade agreement. Ministry officials disagreed on such a guarantee.

The present third round negotiation has been suspended for five days from today and is scheduled to resume on October 16.

During the break, the two sides will take up the issues with their respective higher authorities, sources said.

The wrap-up meeting of the third round negotiation will be held on October 17 at the Ministry of Communications.