Businessmen against hiking gas prices

Expressing grave concern over the initiative to increase gas prices, the business community opposed the idea to maintain competitiveness in the global markets.

The speakers came up with the call at the first meeting of the FBCCI’s Standing Committee on Power, Energy and Utilities held at the FBCCI office on Wednesday.

As the production, transmission and distribution companies have started submitting proposals to the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) to increase prices, the business community stood against the move.

The price hike will also push up production costs, which will reduce the competitiveness of the industry and the revival of the economy amidst the epidemic will be disrupted, they argued.

The committee members demanded a one-stop solution to increase solar power generation, installation of solar panels on barren river islands, government initiatives for research and development activities, and undertaking power generation projects from waste and rice husks.

While addressing the meeting, FBCCI Senior Vice-President Mostofa Azad Chowdhury Babu said that China and India would continue to operate coal-fired power plants for another 20 years to sustain economic growth. Bangladesh should also take the initiative to ensure the best use of its coal reserves.

Focusing on expanding gas exploration activities on a large scale, he said if Bapex could not do it alone, it should speed up the digging of exploration wells in a joint venture with the private sector.

Abul Kasem Khan, director-in-charge of the standing committee and director of the FBCCI, said the country’s growing dependence on imports in the energy sector was not safe for the future. Harnessing domestic resources to ensure long-term energy security and sustain industrialisation is crucial.

FBCCI Director Md Naser complained that the businessmen are being deprived of power generation benefits due to extreme mismanagement in the distribution system.

Mollah M Amzad Hossain, a member of the standing committee, suggested that the management of the distribution companies be left to the private sector to bring order. He said the government should drill at least 100 more wells to explore oil and gas.

He also called for maintaining gas and electricity connections to outside industries until the economic zones were fully ready.

Energypac Power Generation Limited CEO Humayun Rashid presided over the meeting and said the security of the country’s energy sector would be disrupted if coordination between domestic and foreign sources in the power and energy sector was not ensured.

Among others, also present at the meeting were Committee Co-Chairman Md Salauddin Yousuf, Mohammad Ali Deen, Nazmul Haque and FBCCI Secretary-General Mohammad Mahfuzul Hoque.

Gas price is going to be hiked after three years. The Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD) called to send the proposal to Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) against the recommendation of Petrobangla.

The production, transmission and distribution companies have started submitting proposals to BERC to increase prices.