Ensure power supply round the clock

Mild and moderate heat wave is now sweeping over the country. This heat wave, according to the Met office bulletin, will continue for few more days. This is the time when people need more electricity consumption as air-conditioners and fans are used more than any time in the year. Load-shedding during this sweltering summer heat is unbearable. But at this crucial time of boiling temperature people are enduring load-shedding across the country.

According to the newspaper reports, about one-third of the total power generation is now unutilized for many different reasons. Either it is a fuel crisis or maintenance-related downtime. While Rampal Power Plant is facing a shortage of coal, Petrobangla is not able to increase gas supply. There is also shortage of furnace oil and diesel that is hampering electricity generation at full capacity. These are the reasons why with the rise of temperature power generation is not increasing proportionally.

The Power Development Board officials reportedly acknowledged the fact of fuel crisis. They, however, said they were trying to solve the problem together with Petrobangla and Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation. The sooner they can solve it the better it is for the people who are enduring the sizzling heat. The good news is coal for the Rampal Power Plant has already arrived.

The gas crisis has already hit hard the power plants in Haripur, Bheramara, Ghorasal, Ashuganj and Sirajganj. The Rampal Power Plant has remained shut since April 2023 due to the shortage of coal. In Barguna a 307-MW power plant is now closed as it has no coal to generate power. The PDB and PGCB data shows that 100 out of the 154 power plants in the country can’t produce electricity at full capacity.

Power plants based on furnace oil can now produce only 2660MW of electricity while they have the capacity of generating 5, 925MW. Similarly, privately-owned diesel-fired power plants have the capacity of producing 230MW of electricity but they can produce only 1286MW of power. Experts are saying that the country is facing fuel crisis due to dollar shortage that has been crippling the country for the past one year.

Netrakona is experiencing power outage of seven to eight times a day. Barguna is experiencing load-shedding 30 minutes every two hours during the daytime. According to the data of Power Grid Company of Bangladesh (PGCB) hourly-cut data, urban areas is now in better position in terms of power supply while the rural areas are suffering the most. The government had a plan to produce at least 16, 000MW of electricity a day during the sweltering heat from April to June when the country experience heat waves across the country.

But the government has so far failed to generate the least 16, 000MW of electricity in a day since April 01. On April 09 the Power Development Board (PDB) could generate a record 15, 648MW of electricity. Since then it has declined steadily. The country’s total capacity of generating electricity is 22, 566MW while it is producing much less than 15, 000MW.

It is really disheartening to see that the country has the capacity of producing much-needed daily demand for electricity but it has failed to do so. We urge and call upon the government to look into the matter seriously as the people of the country are going through a hard time due to sweltering heat. It must ensure gas, diesel, furnace oil and coal for the smooth operation of the power plants to reduce sufferings of people during this time of ongoing heat wave.