Dhaka, May 31, 2020 (BSS) – The Power Division today said the analysis of Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) on power supply system, which was released on May 20, is one-sided, unexpected and motivated.
“The partial analysis of TIB on power supply system released on May 20 was one-sided, unexpected and motivated,” said the Power Division, according to a statement.
Today, the entire world is helpless and the world economy, including the economies of the developed countries, is destroyed by the deadly coronavirus epidemic, but such fragmented analysis of TIB on Bangladesh’s power sector is not only one-sided and unexpected but also motivated, it said.
The statement said the power generation plan is usually adopted according to the demand of power sector in the country, like in other countries.
Following the plan, the PSMP-2016 was prepared by using modern and scientific equipment, considering projection of electricity demand, availability of energy, regional load pattern, transmission system and Least Cost Option, it said.
“Any plan is an ongoing process that is updated from time to time based on the situation, as the case of PSMP, which was updated in 2016 continuation of 2005 and 2010, and now the updating process has been taken up again,” the statement added.
It said in any country of the world, power generation plans keep a higher production capacity than the demand, which is commonly known as reserve margin.
The statement said the logical reasons for keeping reserve margin are: shutdown for routine repair and maintenance of power plants, power outages due to accident or other reasons and production capacity reduction due to age of power plants. The reserve margin is more than 100 percent in some countries such as Germany. Even reserve margin is more than 70 percent in India.
The Power Division has been working to assess the overall damage in the sector in order to determine what will be needed in future to deal with the crisis, so that the power sector can move forward with a specific action plan, it said.
However, TIB did not mention any report or recommendation in its press conference. Even TIB’s quote on subsidy to farmers for using electricity in irrigation is misinterpreted and false. But the tariff set by Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) on electricity used in irrigation is the minimum.
In addition, 20 percent subsidy payable to farmers for irrigation is maintained, but the Power Division or the Power Cell did not propose to cancel it.
The statement said the Power Division has undertaken a number of activities for expansion of renewable energy in line with the government’s renewable energy policy. SREDA was established as a single institution in this regard.
“But the reality is – Bangladesh’s land scarcity and weather-climate is not as favourable as in the world’s renewable energy rich countries. So, we are working to ensure the maximum utilization of renewable resources through the use of our adaptable and sustainable technology,” it said.
Bangladesh is the country to install the largest solar home system in the world. Solar power is a proven potential renewable and the government is giving priority to the installation of rooftop solar panels.
“We hope that the above explanation will put an end to any misunderstanding on the issues mentioned in the TIB press release. The power division is committed to supply uninterrupted quality electricity to everyone at an affordable price,” the Power Division statement added.
