Although the extent of load shedding was lower compared with the previous day on Monday, the country was reeling from over 2,000 MW of shortage in electricity generation on Tuesday.
The data of the National Load Dispatch Centre (NLDC) at the Power Grid Company of Bangladesh (PGCB) shows that the country experienced load shedding in excess of 2100 MW at 3pm in the day peak hours, when the generation was 14,273 MW against a demand for 16,400 MW.
At any given time, the amount of load shedding is the difference between the amount of electricity generated and its demand, when the former is in deficit.
There is a forecast that the demand will go up to 17,300 MW in the evening peak hours and the extent of load shedding may exceed 2,200 MW amid what is already the hottest as well as longest heatwave on record in the country.
The NLDC data also shows that the country's on-grid installed generation capacity is 27,057 MW, but almost 7000 MW of that is currently out of the equation due to fuel shortage and plant maintenance programme.
"Some 4,761 MW of power remains out of generation only because of gas shortage," a top official of the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) told UNB, referring to the NLDC data.
Another 2196 MW remains out of commission due to scheduled maintenance work.
BPDB official, who was granted anonymity to speak on matters considered sensitive, said they have been receiving 1,293 million cubic feet per day (MMCFD) of gas against a demand for more than 2,317 MMCFD.
Officials also noted that consumers at the rural areas are the principal victims of the power outages this time as many areas have to experience several hours of load shedding at different times.
According to an official from the Bangladesh Rural Electrification Board (BREB), "Power outages in rural areas are so frequent that any interruption means consumers have to wait several hours to get electricity back."
The data shows on Monday the areas under Dhaka region experienced 360 MW of load shedding while Chattagram 165 MW, Khulna 132 MW, Rajshahi 182 MW, Comilla 245 MW, Mymensingh 275 MW, Sylhet 44 MW and Rangpur 130 MW while there was no load shedding in Barisal on the day.
