Category: Energy and Power

Bangladesh will purchase $3.5 billion of US agricultural products and $15 billion of energy products over 15 years, as part of a broader reciprocal trade agreement with Washington signed recently.

This procurement value will increase if the planned purchase of 14 Boeing jets by state-run Biman is taken into account.

The interim government said it is going to sign a deal with Boeing to purchase 14 planes valued at around Tk 30,000-35,000 crore ($2.46-2.87 billion). ‘Bangladesh commits to provide signifi cant preferential market access for US industrial and agricultural goods, including: chemicals; medical devices; machinery and motor vehicles and parts; information and communication technology (ICT) equipment; energy products; soy products; dairy products; beef; poultry; and tree nuts and fruit,’ said a joint statement issued by the White House.

The UK government has secured a record 4.9 GW of solar capacity in its latest contracts for difference (CfD) auction round, at a clearing price of GBP 65 ($88) per MWh.

AR7 awarded contracts to 1.87 GW of capacity across 72 projects due to come online by 2028, and 3 GW of capacity to 85 projects due by 2029.

Successful developers will now be awarded a 20-year fl at rate contract with the stateowned Low Carbon Contracts Company (LCCC). CfDs have been a key part of the UK government’s renewables strategy since the fi rst auction opened in October 2014.

There was a step change in solar capacity succeeding at auction in the sixth allocation round, when nearly 3.3 GW was allocated across 90 projects – a record at the time.

The increase in solar capacity assigned through UK CfDs comes as the government pursues ambitious deployment targets, aiming to more than double PV capacity from 21.5 GW recorded by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) in December 2025 to at least 45 GW by 2030.

Eight people were injured, including two with burns, when a gas cylinder exploded at Pasta Club Restaurant in the Wari area of Dhaka recently.

The incident occurred on the third fl oor of the Bata Showroom building under Wari Police Station, where the restaurant’s kitchen gas cylinder suddenly exploded.

The injured were identifi ed as Shah Alam, 45, Yunus, 30, Saurav, 25, Mehedi, 25, Mostofa, 27, Abir, 22, Jasim, 28, and Kamrul, 20.

Eyewitness Yusuf Sheikh said nearby people rushed to the scene after hearing the explosion. With the help of locals and passersby, the injured were taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

Several victims are receiving treatment at the hospital’s burn unit.

Harun-ur-Rashid, resident surgeon at DMCH Burn and Emergency Unit, said two burn victims were admitted, and their condition is being treated, though the extent of their injuries is not yet clear.

Syeda Rizwana Hasan, Adviser to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change; the Ministry of Water Resources; and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, said that courageous and responsible institutions working for the welfare of nature and people are what the country needs most. She noted that the government alone cannot reach every corner of society, and such institutions are the government’s strongest partners. She emphasized that institutions delivering doorstep services at the grassroots level in areas such as healthcare, environmental conservation, and the protection of culture and heritage must work in close coordination with all government agencies.

the Environment Adviser made these remarks recently while speaking as the chief guest at a program jointly organized by the Nature and Life Foundation and Channel i at Chetana Chattar of Channel i in the capital.

at the event, in recognition of her long-standing outstanding contributions to nature, the environment, and the lives of marginalized people in Bangladesh, the ‘Nature and Life Foundation- Channel i Nature Conservation Award 2025’ was presented to Runa Khan, Founder and Executive Director of the social development organization Friendship.

LPG Operators Association of Bangladesh (LOAB) recently said the recognition of the Lique?ed Petroleum Gas (LPG) as green fuel will play a signi?cant role in promoting cleaner energy usage, ensuring national energy security, and encouraging further investment in the sector. ‘It will also contribute positively to achieving the country’s energy and environmental objectives in alignment with the best global practices,’ said LOAB President Mohammed Amirul Haque in a letter sent to Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Adviser Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan. On behalf of the LPG Operators Association of Bangladesh (LOAB), he expressed their sincere gratitude to the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources for declaring Lique?ed Petroleum Gas (LPG) as a green gas.

The government has unveiled a new 25-year power and energy master plan, to be implemented from 2026 to 2050.

according to a recent press release from the chief adviser’s press wing, implementing the plan will require an estimated $177 billion to $192 billion. Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan, adviser to the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources, submitted the master plan to Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus at State House Jamuna in presence of several advisers and senior of?cials. Policy gaps in the previous three master plans — prepared in 2005, 2010, and revised in 2016 — were identi?ed and brie?y reviewed during the meeting, the release added.

the new plan projects peak electricity demand of 59,000 megawatts (MW) by 2050, compared to 70,500 MW in the 2023 plan. Current demand is around 16,700 MW.

the 2023 integrated power and energy master plan, prepared with JICA’s support, was criticized by local experts for overestimating demand and including highcost fuel sources. Following the formation of the interim government, various quarters called for a review with input from local experts.

India’s energy storage system industry is expected to move from tendering to execution in 2026, according to a new report from the India Energy Storage Alliance (IESA).

as of Dec. 31, 2025, a total of 224 GWh of energy storage capacity had been tendered, comprising 92 GWh of battery energy storage systems and 132 GWh of pumped hydro storage.

of that total, 95 GWh is in various stages of execution, 80 GWh remains under tender, and 47 GWh of tenders have been canceled.

the report notes that 2025 marked an unprecedented year for tendering activity, with 69 tenders totaling 102 GWh issued during the year.

that volume was nearly equal to the combined total of tenders issued between 2018 and 2024. Projects awarded since mid-2023 are expected to begin commissioning in 2026, in line with standard project development timelines of 18 to 24 months. ‘All eyes will remain on whether the performance of these projects is in line with what was committed,’ said Debmalya Sen, president of IESA. ‘2026 will be the year when a number of projects enter the operational phase.

the next challenge is ?nancing these projects, especially those with low tariffs.’

A major Gaza hospital has suspended several services because of a critical fuel shortage in the devastated Palestinian territory, which continues to face a severe humanitarian crisis, it said. Devastated by more than two years of war, the Al-Awda Hospital in the central Gaza district of Nuseirat cares for around 60 in-patients and receives nearly 1,000 people seeking medical treatment each day. ‘Most services have been temporarily stopped due to a shortage of the fuel needed for the generators,’ said Ahmed Mehanna, a senior of?cial involved in managing the hospital. ‘Only essential departments remain operational: the emergency unit, maternity ward and paediatrics.’ To keep these services running, the hospital has been forced to rent a small generator, he added.

under normal conditions, Al-Awda Hospital consumes between 1,000 and 1,200 litres of diesel per day.

at present, however, it has only 800 litres available.

A gang reportedly siphoning fuel from the Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation’s (BPC) Dhaka-Chattogram pipeline was exposed after the pipeline ruptured in the Hadirfakirhat area of Mirsharai upazila in Chattogram.

the incident occurred this morning when fuel began continuously seeping from the underground pipeline, alarming locals and prompting police and multiple agencies to rush to the site. Police and BPC of?cials suspect the gang had been stealing fuel for an extended period by setting up a makeshift structure beside the pipeline. The theft had remained hidden until the rupture revealed the siphoning operation.

authorities have already identi?ed the owner of the makeshift structure and those who rented it, and police are conducting drives to arrest those involved.

Australian authorities declared a state of disaster on Saturday after bush?res destroyed houses and razed vast belts of forest in the country’s southeast.

temperatures soared past 40C as a heatwave blanketed the state of Victoria this week, with hot winds fanning some of the most dangerous ?re weather seen since the Black Summer bush?res of 2019-2020.

one of the most destructive bush?res ripped through almost 150,000 hectares (370,000 acres) near Longwood, a region cloaked in native forests. Fire crews have started tallying the damage, with early reports of at least 20 houses destroyed in the small town of Ruffy, about two hours’ drive north of state capital Melbourne. State premier Jacinta Allan on Saturday declared a state of disaster, giving ?re crews emergency powers to force evacuations. ‘It’s all about one thing: protecting Victorian lives,’ she said.