Achieving A Sustainable Energy Future

While the nation continues on a bumpy ride towards the restoration of democracy, the energy crisis continues to grow deeper.

- Khondkar Abdus Saleque

The interim government somehow managed to reduce huge outstanding payments in the power and energy sectors, restoring the credibility of suppliers. However, the fuel supply crisis makes power generation challenging. Investment in the power and energy sectors has declined. Many small and medium-sized industries have shut down. Many large industries, mostly export-oriented, have become sick. Thousands of people have lost their jobs. Export earnings are dwindling.

The major crisis lies in the sustainable supply of primary fuel. Such a diabolic situation is the outcome of a lack of appropriate planning, implementation strategy, governance, and foresight by successive governments. The interim government, in its nine months, also could not provide a sense of direction to the weak and sick energy and power sector. It can claim some credit for managing the irrigation load and Ramadan power demand successfully. However, the crisis returned as soon as the weather started warming up with the advent of the hot, humid summer.

Experts and observers have long been pleading to ensure the efficient exploitation of domestic fuel resources (coal and gas). But successive governments did not care to listen. A country like Bangladesh, with a fragile economy, cannot sustain the challenges of relying on fuel imports from the volatile global market. Governments, including the present one, remain clueless about exploiting discovered coal resources. Business-as-usual petroleum resource exploration cannot confront the existing and emerging crisis.