Power Div seeks Tk 4.75b less fund in revised ADP

FHM Humayan Kabir | Published: February 04, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00

The Power Division has downsized its fund requirement in the development budget by Tk 4.75 billion from its total allocations. It failed to utilise the allocated money in the first half of the current fiscal year (FY), officials said.
The Division officials said early this week that they need Tk 85.78 billion fund in the revised Annual Development Programme (RADP) to be finalised within this month against the current outlay of Tk 90.53 billion in the original ADP.
"We have already sent our fund requirement to the Planning Commission. We have cut our needs as our project implementing agencies have failed to utilise the money as per target during the July-December period," said a senior Power Division official.
The Planning Commission (PC) has already begun revision of the country's Tk 658.72 billion development budget for the current financial year (FY) 2013-14 adjusting requirements of all the government ministries and divisions.
Power is the top priority sector of the government as the country is struggling to overcome huge electricity supply shortfall against the demand every year.
According to the power sector master plan 2010, Bangladesh's anticipated peak demand would be nearly 10,283 megawatt (MW) a day in FY2015 which will rise to 17,304 MW a day in FY2020.
A senior PC official said the Power Division has sought Tk 4.75 billion less funds in the upcoming RADP from its preset Tk 90.53 billion allocation as it is seeing lower expenditure in the remaining months of the fiscal.
The Power Division, the second highest development fund holder, spent Tk 20.94 billion or 24 per cent of its total allocation in the ADP during the July-December period of the current fiscal.
The Division is implementing 56 development projects in the current ADP for improving the power supply situation of the country.
Among the total Tk 85.78 billion downsized requirements in the proposed RADP, the Power Division has sought Tk 53.73 billion from the government's own exchequer and Tk 32.05 billion from the multilateral and bilateral donors as project aid.
In the current ADP allocation, the government has provided Tk 60.73 billion from the government's own resources and Tk 35.31 billion from the development partners as project aid.
"We are hopeful of utilising the proposed money in the RADP in the current fiscal. We have different power generation and transmission schemes to boost the country's electricity supply," said the Power Division official.
The government is committed to generate 20,000MW of electricity by FY2021 where it needs investment worth billions of dollars.
Bangladesh faces severe power shortage as all the power stations together can supply nearly 5500 MW a day against the demand for 6,500 MW.
The PC official said they are reviewing the fund proposals of the Power Division. "After scrutiny, we will finalise the new outlay for the revised ADP," he added.