Home ›› 08 Jul 2022 ›› Front
The government has banned the illumination of shopping malls, shops, social events, community centres, offices, courts and homes for decorative purposes in an attempt to save electricity.
The Cabinet Division issued a notification in this regard on Thursday, imposing the restrictions until further notice.
The decision came in the backdrop of frequent power disruptions and gas shortages across the country in recent days and the spiralling fuel prices in the international market due to the Russia-Ukraine war.
Earlier in the day, the prime minister’s Energy Adviser Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury also said the government is also considering a rescheduled office timing of 9am to 3pm and also allowing officials to work from home for two or three days a week to save electricity.
The Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry will recommend the Public Administration Ministry and other concerned ministries to cut the weekly working hours and implement the work-from-home policy, he said.
He shared the plan at a press conference at the Prime Minister’s Office on Thursday, after a high-level meeting of the top officials of the power ministry and its subordinate bodies there.
The Cabinet Division will take the final decision, Tawfiq said, adding that the Education Ministry will take decisions about educational institutions.
He also announced a series of austerity measures that they would recommend implementing like limited use of air conditions in offices, markets and mosques, and strictly following the market closing time at 8pm after Eid as part of demand management in electricity consumption. Wedding ceremonies will also have to be completed in an hour from 7pm to 8 pm as part of the management.
Frequent power cuts, caused by generation shortfall from lower-than-required gas supply to power plants, recently returned as Bangladesh felt the first stirrings of a global energy crisis created by the Russia-Ukraine war.
Under the circumstances, energy experts recommended a proper and planned load management of the current energy supply that could lessen the suffering of the people.
How can oil use be reduced?
The rising Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) prices in the world market have resulted in reduced power generation in Bangladesh but its supply has become so low that people are struggling to cook foods on stoves while shops and factories are also feeling the effects.
The government has also been unable to buy LNG from the spot market —— where Bangladesh gets the bulk of its supplies — due to the rising prices, with the price per unit crossing the $40 mark from $25. As a result, supply has dropped by 30%.
People experienced the first work-from-home phase when the Covid-19 pandemic broke out in the country at the beginning of 2020 after the government imposed lockdowns.
Now, they may go through the same drill this time for the electricity crisis, at a time when daily Covid deaths and cases have also started climbing.
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina urged people to cooperate as the government is forced to go for load shedding and limit electricity generation due to the continuous rise in global fuel prices.
There are no other alternatives to these since it could not increase subsidy in the power sector, she said, noting her administration currently providing subsidies of Tk 28,000 crore to this sector.
She asked authorities to prepare an area-wise specific time-based load-shedding routine across the country and urged countrymen to save power to the best of their ability.
The premier also said that the government currently provides a subsidy of Tk 25,000 crore for LNG import to meet the demand for gas to operate the power plants.
Before the Cabinet Division banned the decorative lighting everywhere, she had also made the same request to the people and suggested reduced working hours or work from home policy to save power.
Choosing the best alternative
On Thursday, Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury said if such actions were implemented, the daily load-shedding will be possible to keep within 500 MW.
He noted that the prime minister has asked the officials to follow an equitable policy in implementing the load shedding management so that people in rural and urban areas get power cuts on an equitable basis.
He also said the situation will hopefully improve from September when some coal-based power plants, including Rampal and Payra, goes into production and 1,600 MW import from India starts.
Many countries around the world have opted for reduced work hours in a bid to save energy.
France is working on measures aimed at reducing the country’s energy consumption by 10 per cent over the next two years, amid concerns that suppliers could experience shortages this winter.
The three biggest providers — Engie, EDF and TotalEnergies — in France have already called for businesses and individuals to reduce their consumption last month, stating acting this summer will allow us to be better prepared to face winter and in particular to preserve gas reserves.
