PM to take stock of energy situation

FE Report | Published: April 06, 2015 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will discuss the country's existing power and energy situation and developments with the government high-ups of the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources (MPEMR) on April 9 (Thursday), officials said.
The PM, who is also in charge of the ministry, will discuss different ongoing development projects of Power Division and Energy and Mineral Resources Division during the meeting, additional secretary of Power Division Ahmad Kaikaus told the FE Sunday.
The meeting on Thursday in the secretariat would be the PM's second one with the MPEMR officials during her current tenure.
The PM had earlier held a similar meeting with the ministry officials on February 6, 2014 and directed them on different issues.
She might enquire the latest developments of her previous directives on power and energy issues during this week's meeting.
Officials said the country's overall electricity generation is currently hovering around 6,500 megawatts (MW) against the demand for over 7,500 MW.
Natural gas supply stays at around 2,600 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd) against the demand for over 3,000 mmcfd.
The nation's demand for electricity and natural gas has been increasing by around 10 per cent every year.
To cope with the mounting electricity demand and shortage of natural gas, the government has been diversifying energy sources.
The country has been importing electricity from India over the past two years and it has planned to import more electricity from the neighbouring countries including Nepal and Myanmar.
Steps have also been taken for energy swap with Myanmar by importing natural gas and exporting access electricity.
The government has also been working to import liquefied natural gas (LNG) and re-gasify it to supply to the user ends to increase natural gas supplies.
The government has also moved to increase the availability of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) for cooking instead of piped gas to households.
Electricity generation from coal-fired power plants is seen as key to enhancing future electricity generation.
mazizur.rahman@outlook.com