Policies on merchant power plants, renewable energy soon

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M Azizur Rahman
The government will adopt a couple of policies relating to merchant power plants and renewable energy by October next to woo private sector investments in the country's ailing power sector, officials said.
Besides, an act, styled, Energy Conservation Ordinance, is expected to be adopted within this period.
"The proposed merchant power plant policy is aimed at luring the private sector to set up power plants individually or under public-private partnerships, while the renewable energy policy will help implement renewable energy projects in the quickest possible time," a senior power ministry official said.
He said the energy conservation act would help maintain austerity measures to ensure efficient use of energy.
Once approved, the policies and the act would help mitigate the country's electricity crisis and provide relief to the industrial sector.
A good number of industries are now closed or operating partially mainly due to electricity crisis. Many more are dependent on captive power generators.
Currently, the country's total electricity generation is hovering around 3,500 megawatts (MW) as against the demand for over 5,000 MW.
The power ministry has already drafted the policies and the act and sought necessary comments from the stakeholders to quicken its implementation.
"We have held discussions with the stakeholders over the draft policies and the act early this month and requested them to provide necessary comments and suggestions, if there is any," power secretary Dr M Fouzul Kabir Khan told the FE Sunday.
He said an inter-ministerial meeting would be arranged soon to finalise the drafts of these policies and act incorporating necessary suggestions from the stakeholders.
"The final draft of the policies and the act concerned would be sent to the cabinet division for securing approval from the council of advisers within October next," Mr Khan said.
Power ministry official said under the proposed merchant power policy, the sponsors of power plants would be free to arrange fuel on their own to set up power plants and select their customers.
The private entrepreneurs would be allowed to fix electricity tariffs through negotiations with their respective clients.
They would also be allowed to have access to transmission and distribution lines of utilities in exchange for payment of agreed wheeling charges to the state-owned Power Grid Company of Bangladesh (PGCB).
The policy, when implemented, would bring an end to the existing single buyer system in the power sector under which the state-owned Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) purchases electricity from all power producers both in public and private sectors at higher rates and sells to distribution utilities at subsidised rates.
The age-old and inefficient power units would also be rehabilitated under public-partnership through this policy, official said.
The renewable energy policy would help tapping of the huge potentials to generate electricity from renewable energy resources, officials said.
Till date several public, private and non-government organisations installed a good number of renewable energy units using solar, wind, bio-gas sources across the country with financial assistance from donor agencies.
Total electricity generation from renewable energy sources now stands at around 15 MW.
But this generation could be increased significantly through smooth growth and expansion of their renewable energy projects under the policy.
The government would bring changes in the existing building code making installation of solar panels and necessary renewable energy tools mandatory for high-rise apartments and commercial buildings under the proposed energy conservation act.
It would also help raise awareness among the people to promote efficient energy use, a senior Power Cell official said
Uses of energy efficient bulbs and ballasts in tube lights would also be made mandatory in phases under the proposed energy conservation act.