Energy & Power

Snapshots

PDB Given Tk 2B Fund for Paying Arrear Bills of IPPs

The government recently allocated Tk 2.0 billion to the cash-starved Power Development Board (PDB) to pay arrear power purchase bills of the independent power producers (IPPs).

In January, the board sought the fund as block allocation for payment to the IPPs, who were threatening to stop supply to the national grid if the board failed to clear the dues.

A senior official of the PDB said: "Recently, we cleared all the dues worth Tk 5.26 billion of the IPPs with the fund allocated by the government and arrear realized from the power distribution entities."

The PDB has received Tk 1.0 billion from Dhaka Electric Supply Authority (DESA), Tk 520 million from Power Grid Company of Bangladesh (PGCB), Tk 500 million from Rural Electrification Board (REB), Tk 700 million from Dhaka Electric Supply Company (DESCO) and Tk 300 million from West Zone Power Distribution Company (WZPDCO).

The PDB could meet only 50 per cent of the demand for power with the generation by its own power stations, he further said. The board has to pay Tk 1.75 billion on an average as monthly bill to the IPPs.

Land Allocations for 21 CNG Pumps Cancelled

The Communications Ministry on Monday cancelled land allocations for 21 CNG filling stations as the entrepreneurs failed to start the pumps within the fixed timeframes. The lands were owned by Bangladesh Railway and Roads and Highways Department, said a government handout.

The land allocations for Naisr Hossain, MAJ Wadud Didar, Azizul Bari, Azimuddin and gang, ABM Mohiuddin, Rezaul Karim, M Badiul Alam, Abdur Rashid Gazi, AKM Ruhul AMin, MA Kashem, Afsana Khan, Maulana Aminul Islam, Nazmul Huq, Surut Ali CNG, Begum Shamsunnahar Khwaza Ahsanullah, MA Salam, M Giasuddin gang, Babul Ahmed, M Waliullah, Begum Mahmuda Khanam Swapna, SS CNG Filling Station and Conversion Servicing Centre, and Humayun Kabir Khan were cancelled.

“Cancel Corrupt Agreements on Mineral Resources”
Speakers at a dialogue have urged the caretaker government to cancel all the 'corrupt agreements' concerning oil, gas and mineral resources with foreign companies. They also demanded action against the persons responsible for such agreements that went against the country's interest.

They also called on the government to safeguard the country's interest while ensuring the optimal use of mineral resources. The National Committee for Protection of Oil-Gas-Mineral Resources, Power and Port organized the dialogue at Dhaka Reporters' Unity auditorium.

Prof Anu Muhammad, former chairman of PDB Nuruddin Mahmud Kamal, Justice Golam Rabbani, former chairman of Petrobangla Dr Hossain Monsur, economist MM Akash and engineer Sheikh Muhammed Shahidullah spoke this dialogue.

“Cut Illegal Connections to Save Power”

Experts at a seminar called for disconnecting all illegal and unpaid electric connections by imposing heavy penalty throughout the country. They also called for taking stern actions against corrupt employees in power sector by replacing them with honest, qualified and non-political persons.

The seminar was organized by Electric, Electronic and Communication Engineering (EECE) Department of Military Institute of Science and Technology (MIST).

"Cutting illegal and unpaid connections will save about 300 MW electricity a day," said Lt Col Moin Uddin, instructor of the EECE.

In his presentation on 'Electric Power Crisis in Bangladesh: Possible Solutions', Moin stressed the need for stern action for the recovery of outstanding bills which is about Tk 190 crore.

In another presentation, Prof Quamrul Ahsan of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet) said power plants with the capacity of generating 12,936 MW power would be required to meet the demand in next 20 years.

"It is recommended to have 300 MW nuclear power generations after 10 years and after 5 years of interval another 500 MW should be added to the list," he said, adding that nuclear energy is more dependable with low production cost, though it requires huge investment cost at the initial stage.
Prof Quamrul laid emphasis on increasing the density of drilling for extracting more gas and use of coal for future electricity generation. of the private sector in power generation. Dr Matin recommended formation of an independent commission to look into renewable energy and go for Saarc cooperation in meeting the future electricity demand.
MIST Commandant Maj Gen Abdul Wadud, ndu, psc also spoke at the seminar.

ADB for Big IPP Plants to Mitigate Power Crisis

Asian Development Bank (ADB) Country Director Hua Du has stressed the need for setting up big plants of Independent Power Producer (IPP) to mitigate the power crisis in Bangladesh. "You definitely need big IPP plants,” she told newsmen after meeting with Finance Advisor Mirza Azizul Islam at his secretariat office.

About the small IPP plants, the ADB country chief said before setting up small IPP plants "you must take into account the site, economic viability and how far it is from the grid."

Hua Du observed that the production cost and selling price of power have wide gap even after power price hike.

BEA Finds no Logic behind Raising Kerosene Price

President of Bangladesh Economic Association (BEA) Quazi Kholiquzzaman Ahmad said the recent hike in domestic prices of fuel oils, especially kerosene, would aggravate the inflationary pressure as kerosene is widely used by the poor people in the electricity-hungry rural areas. He spoke as gust in Bangladesh Leasing and Finance Companies Association (BLFCA) luncheon meeting recently.

'I don't see any logic behind hiking the kerosene price as it hits the poor hard,' said the BEA president. The government should rather concentrate more on reducing corruption so that the money saved could be spent as subsidy on kerosene for poor consumers.

'There is a distortion in the market due to syndicated trading that manipulated the normal supply of goods to the market,' he added. He cautioned that widening income disparity would affect the benefit of growth.

BLFCA chairman Anis A Khan, vice-chairman Mafizuddin Sarker and former chairman A Quadir Choudhury were also present at the meeting.

Shortage of Translators Hampers BERC Activities

The shortage of translators has been hampering the activities of Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC), said its Chairman Mujibur Rahman Khan. "We have drafted necessary regulations but all of those are in English," he said, adding that the regulations must be translated into Bangla for publishing them in government gazette.

Lack of efficient translators has slowed the commission's activities down, he said while speaking as the chief guest at the inaugural session of a training program 'Energy consumers' rights and responsibilities'. Consumers' Association of Bangladesh (CAB) and the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commission jointly organized the two-day training.

Speaking at the program, USAID Sector Development Officer in Dhaka McDonald Homer said Bangladesh is undergoing 'exciting power sector reform'. He suggested adopting a proactive approach to implementing such reforms. Transparency, pricing and access issues should also be addressed at the same time, he added. He also said that quality of utility services is not the privilege of the few but the right of all.

Chairman of Unnayan Shamannay Dr Atiur Rahman said the people have been suffering a lot due to massive corruption in the power sector. The consumers should unite to ensure their rights, he said.

Russians Keen to Invest in Power, Transport Sectors

Visiting Russian business delegates expressed keen interest to invest in areas such as power, transport and waste management system in Bangladesh. "As we have expertise in establishing hydro power plants in some EU countries and China, we can invest in Bangladesh as the country faces huge power crisis," said Alexander Shalimov, director (export sales) of JSC Tushinskiy Machine-Building Plant (TMP).

"We will study investment potentiality in Bangladesh. If there are chances to invest here we can invest in the power sector either with 100 percent ownership or jointly," Shalimov said.

The four-member Russian delegates were exchanging views separately with leaders of Federation of Bangladesh Chambers and Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) and Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI).

"Bangladesh is quite an attractive place for transport sector investment. So, we consider investing in Bangladesh to establish Kamaz's truck and bus assembling plant here. The company has such plants in Iran, Pakistan and Vietnam," Ildar Urmanov, leader of the business delegation of Russia and first deputy general manager of Kamaz Inc.

Now, Kamaz Inc is selling heavy trucks and buses in 97 countries, he said. The company delivers 45,000 trucks and 2000 buses to the world market per year, he added.

Indian Railways Testing CNG-powered Engines

In a move to use non-conventional fuels for running its engines, Indian Northern Railways is now conducting trial runs of locomotives with eco-friendly CNG. "We have successfully conducted trial runs of railway engines with CNG and trials are now being done on the Delhi-Rohtak and Delhi-Rewari routes," said a senior Railway official. "The trials on these routes began just a few months back. These trials will be confined to areas near Delhi."

New Delhi already has eco-friendly compressed natural gas-run buses, auto-rickshaws and taxis. "We cannot depend totally on conventional fuels. So we have to look at other options and this (engines runs on CNG) is a step forward in that direction," another official said.

A feasibility study and technical report on the project was done in July 2004. The report was submitted to and subsequently cleared for trials by the Research, Design and Standards Organization. "After the clearances, work on structural modification and the retro fitment of CNG kits was started in November 2004 at Shakurbasti Diesel Shed," the official said.

Indraprastha Gas Limited, which supplied CCOE-approved cascade fitted with CNG high-pressure cylinders, high-pressure gas pipelines and other fittings to the railways, has installed a CNG filling station at Shakurbasti Diesel Shed for filling the fuel in the engines, officials said.

This is the first such installation in the Indian Railways.

IGL now supplies 1,000 kg of CNG to the Shakurbasti shed and the railways recently informed it that there is a requirement of 10,000 to 15,000 kg of CNG every day. The cost of CNG is 60 per cent less than that of diesel for generating the same amount of power.

However, in a dual fuel engine, CNG will replace approximately 50 per cent of diesel, and the operating expenses will thus be reduced by about 30 per cent. It is expected that the average saving per engine per annum will be approximately Rs 27.7 lakh.

Besides, the engines will lessen carbon monoxide and sulphur oxide emissions, helping reduce the greenhouse effect substantially.

The use of CNG will also help contain expenditure on importing petroleum as India has adequate reserves of natural gas in comparison to petroleum, officials claimed.