Experts and industry leaders at a roundtable discussion on Saturday urged the government to prioritise indigenous energy resources and sustainable policies to ensure national energy security and foster long-term industrial growth.
According to them, reducing high import dependency and rationalising electricity prices are essential to overcome the energy trap currently threatening the competitiveness of the nation's diverse manufacturing sectors.
The Bangladesh Chamber of Industries (BCI) organised the event titled "Future of Energy in Bangladesh: Security, Sustainability, and Investment Opportunities" with the support of Bangladesh Sustainable and Renewable Energy Association (BSREA) and GreenTech Foundation Bangladesh (GTFB) at its office in the city's Tejgaon industrial area.
The discussion focused on addressing the systemic challenges hindering the country's energy transition.
Executive Chairman of Power and Participation Research Centre (PPRC) Dr. Hossain Zillur Rahman joined the event as the chief guest, with BCI President Anwar-ul Alam Chowdhury (Parvez) in the chair.
Lead Analyst at Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) Shafiqul Alam presented the keynote paper.
Member of Bangladesh Energy and Power Research Council (BEPRC) Dr Rafiqul Islam, former Senior Secretary Siddique Zobair, Executive Director of GreenTech Foundation Lutfor Rahman, President of BSREA Mostafa Al Mahmud and Senior Vice President of BCI Priti Chakraborty spoke, among others.
In his speech, Dr. Hossain Zillur Rahman underscored the need for developing innovative ideas. "We need to move towards our own energy security for which solar can be a solution," he said.
He also underscored the need for certainty in polices so that the industries get scope to make plans. "Uncertainty is a bigger problem than that of the abrupt energy cost escalation," he said.
BCI President Mr Chowdhury said the industry in Bangladesh has developed due to relatively cheap gas and fuel and labour.
"But after 2022, we can no longer say cheap gas and fuel. Our gas extraction is decreasing by about 100 MMCF every year, while the government is trying to meet the deficit by importing LNG," he said.
Terming energy the most important for the country's industry and employment, he said every stakeholder has to come forward to find a way out of the crisis.
"We have to convince the government with a specific proposal on how we can overcome such problems and how our future will be more secure so that the government can also take the issues positively," he said.
According to the keynote, fossil fuels dominate Bangladesh's energy and power sectors. Besides, high exposure to international fossil fuel markets amid limited success in renewable energy and declining domestic gas production weakens the country's energy system, leading to a perpetual vulnerability.
It also recommended policy support to accelerate Bangladesh's energy transition, including waiving import duties on rooftop solar components, maintaining rational renewable energy tariffs and strengthening regional energy cooperation beyond 2030.
It also stressed the need for capacity building and awareness programmes to promote energy-efficient technologies.
Mr Siddique Zobair pointed out that while fossil fuels will remain the mainstay for the next 15 years, the failure to meet renewable targets set in 2008 is a collective setback.
He proposed a complete duty waiver on solar components and battery storage to offset the massive subsidies currently spent on imported fuel.
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