The Bangladeshi government will purchase 1 million tons of crude petroleum from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia shortly, Bangladeshi news agency UNB reported Sunday.

Officials said the Cabinet Committee on Public Purchase (CCPP) in a meeting on Sunday approved a proposal of Energy Ministry for the oil purchase for the year 2007.

Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) will import this bulk of crude petroleum from the two oil-rich Arab countries at a cost of about 40,000 million taka (about 571.4 million U.S. dollars).