The government will form a committee to determine the actual amount of state subsidies and outstanding arrears in the power and energy sectors, sources say.
The decision to form the specialised committee has been made to resolve significant data discrepancies, investigate unverified older claims, and review the unexplained financial burdens that persist despite recent tariff hikes.
A meeting chaired by Finance Division Secretary Dr Md Khairuzzaman Mozumder at Bangladesh Secretariat made the decision on Thursday.
Top officials from the Power Division attended the meeting.
At the meeting, Finance Division officials alleged that the proposals and letters sent by the Power Division cited highly inconsistent figures.
They said these variations made it impossible to get a clear idea of the actual subsidy amount, the government's total liabilities, and the volume of outstanding subsidy arrears.
The meeting was told that determining the accurate and verified figures had now become the first priority before making further payments, sources said.
At the meeting, Power Division officials raised the demand for the payment of long-standing subsidy arrears in the power sector.
However, the Finance Division clearly stated that it would not pay against very old subsidy claims.
Another significant issue regarding the tariff hike paradox was raised during the meeting.
Finance Division officials questioned why the subsidy burden was not easing at the expected rate, despite multiple hikes in electricity and gas tariffs in recent times.
They noted that while price adjustments were supposed to alleviate the subsidy pressure, substantial subsidy claims were still being made now. The reasons for this and the basis of the calculations must be clearly presented, they said.
The new initiative regarding subsidies comes at a time when the government continues to face significant financial pressure in the power and energy sectors.
The government has allocated some Tk 370 billion for electricity subsidies in the current fiscal year.
The budget statement noted that the subsidy amount for the power and energy sectors surpassed Tk 400 billion in the fiscal year 2025-26 due to the gap between production costs and selling prices.
syful-islam@outlook.com
