Asianet Pakistan Private Limited

Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Adviser Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan has said Bangladesh is facing a severe gas crisis due to dwindling domestic gas reserves and has planned to import an increased amount of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG). “To mitigate the persistent gas shortage, the government will import more LNG cargoes than last year. Last year, we imported 84 LNG cargoes, but this year we will bring 20 additional cargoes, taking the number to 104 to give relief to the industry and other sectors,” he said on 27 August.

He was addressing a webinar titled “4th State of Investment ClimateBangladesh”, organized by Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (Bida).

Bida Executive Chairman Chowdhury Ashik Mahmud Bin Harun moderated the program.

Acknowledging the 1,000 mmcf daily gas shortage, the energy adviser said the previous government didn’t take any initiatives to explore local gas sources.

Electricity is no longer a luxury in rural Bangladesh.

It lights up homes after sunset, powers irrigation pumps, and keeps small businesses alive.

For millions of families, it means children can study at night and farmers can run their machines. Yet this lifeline is now caught in a damaging power struggle between the Rural Electrification Board (REB) and the Palli Bidyut Samities (PBSs). What began as disputes over rank parity, procurement, and governance has spiraled into strikes, dismissals, and sedition charges.

In the process, ordinary villagers the very people this system was built to serve are left anxious about whether their lights will stay on.

Mothers worry about losing refrigeration for food, students about studying in the dark, and shopkeepers about keeping their businesses open. PBS employees feel sidelined and unfairly treated, while REB insists it has followed due process.

But finger-pointing cannot deliver electricity.

Rural Bangladesh deserves better than being held hostage to bureaucratic rivalries and political indecision.

The solution must start with empathy and fairness: dropped cases, reinstated staff, and genuine dialogue to restore trust.

The contentious merger debate can wait.

For now, the priority is ensuring uninterrupted service and treating frontline workers with dignity.

Rural electrification has been one of Bangladesh’s proudest development stories.

Allowing it to falter because of institutional ego would be a betrayal of the people who rely on it most.

It is time for leaders to step up before darkness returns to the villages.

Marina Tabassum, e m i n e n t architect, Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the Bangladesh National Museum, and Chief Consultant of the July Uprising Museum, has become the first Bangladeshi to win the prestigious Aga Khan Award for Architecture this time for her innovative climate-resilient housing project, ‘Khudi Bari’ or climate-adaptive ‘Little House’. Designed to be lightweight and mobile, a Khudi Bari home can be built in three days and dismantled in just three hours, offering flexibility for families in vulnerable areas.

The Kudi Bari project gained momentum after 2022 with funding from the Swiss Development Corporation.

Tabassum initially tested the structures in Dhaka before expanding implementation to flood-prone districts, including Chandpur, Sunamganj, Jamalpur, Kurigram, and Meghna Char.

BRAC EPL Investments Ltd (BEIL) has entered into a strategic partnership with Paramount Solar Limited (PSL) recently, with BEIL serving as the corporate adviser to support the solar company’s expansion in Bangladesh’s renewable energy sector.

The collaboration is expected to help PSL raise funds to scale its operations, invest in advanced solar technologies, and expand access to clean energy solutions across the country, according to a press release. “We are delighted to work with Paramount Solar Limited as they explore fund-raising options to further expand and grow their business operations,” said Syed Rashed Hussain, chief executive officer of BEIL.

Mohammad Jahidul Abedin, director and chief financial officer of PSL, described the move as a milestone for the company. PSL, one of the fast-growing renewable energy companies in Bangladesh, is focused on delivering clean, affordable, and efficient solar power solutions.

The company aims to empower communities and industries by expanding access to reliable solar energy, supporting the nation’s shift toward a low-carbon future.

Entrepreneurs in Bangladesh’s solar energy sector claim the banks’ complex and conditional financing system is a major obstacle to the expansion ofrooftop solar system installation.

However, banks are calling the financing risk very high due to delays in returning investments, despite instructions from the central bank.

A discussion titled ‘Unveiling Solar Rooftop Finance: Towards a Sustainable Energy Future’ at a hotel in Dhaka recently highlighted challenges and prospects of this sector.

Bangladesh Bank Deputy Governor Nurun Nahar said the government will soon unveil a set of incentive programs to expand solar power.

Thediscussionwasjointlyorganizedby the Bangladesh Sustainable and Renewable EnergyAssociation(BSREA) andActionAid Bangladesh. Naharsaid, ‘BangladeshBankhasbeen involved in solar plants since 2008.

Rooftop solar is now essential for our country.

A policy of 20 percent solar powerisbeing introducedinEPZs, EZs, and other economic zones. ‘New instructions are being issued for commercial banks and financial institutions.

The BPDB will take the initiative to launch cluster-based franchises in all divisional cities, including Dhaka and Chattogram. ‘An escrow system will be introduced to ensure payment security.’Efforts are under way to launch solar power projects in the public-private partnership (PPP) model using unused railway land,she added.

Alamgir Morshed, chief of Infrastructure Development Company Limited (IDCOL), said the company will take the lead in financing rooftop solar projects, though banks’ participation could encourage mixed investments.

Bangladesh’s renewable energy goals are at risk due to the country’s continued expansion of fossil fuel use, according to a new study by the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD). ‘Without a clear fossil fuel phase-outplan,the countrymay struggle to achieve its clean energy targets, despite setting a 30% renewable energy goal by 2040 under the newly drafted Renewable Energy Policy,’ the report warned. Launched in Dhaka recently, the report titled ‘Revisiting Targets Set for Renewable Energybased Power Generation by 2040: Projection of ‘SMART’ Target and Required Investment,’ highlighted that fossil fuel capacity is projected to exceed actual electricity demand by over 4,000 MW in 2030, creating inefficiencies and reducing space for renewable integration.

By 2040, Bangladesh will need 35,713 MW of renewable power capacity to meet its 30% target, yet current trajectories fall short.

However, CPD warned that fragmented policies and the absence of a fossil fuel exit strategy create uncertainty for both public and private investors.

The Bangladesh Sustainable and Renewable Energy Association (BSREA) and the Centre on Integrated Rural Development for Asia and the Pacific (CIRDAP) signed a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) recently at CIRDAP headquarters in Dhaka.

This agreement marks the first-ever partnership between a regional intergovernmental organization and a national renewable energy association to jointly promote rural development through clean energy across Asia and the Pacific.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, Mostafa Al Mahmud, President of BSREA, stated, ‘This partnership is both timely and significant.

Together with CIRDAP, we aim to empower farmers, cooperatives, and rural entrepreneurs by replacing diesel irrigation pumps, promoting solar households and villages, and introducing wind turbines in coastal areas.

This MoU will accelerate our shared commitment to sustainable livelihoods and climate resilience.’

Environment Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan said the required financing and technological assistance for adaptation are still far from adequate. ‘As a deltaic and lower riparian country, Bangladesh is among the most climatevulnerable nations.

Our people are showing resilience and courage in the face of repeated disasters, but our capacity is being stretched due to insufficient mitigation efforts and inadequate international support,’ she said.

The Adviser made the remarks while speaking at an event titled ‘ B i o p h i l i a : R e c o n n e c t i n g People, Climate, and Culture’ hosted by the Embassy of Switzerland recently as part of its commitment to action against the climate crisis.

Biophilia showcased how community-led initiatives are best placed to address the impact of climate change on left behind communities, said the Embassy.

The day-long festival was also an opportunity to promote the Swiss-supported Climate Action at Local Level (CALL) program. Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Adviser Muhammad Fouzlul Kabir Khan attended as the chief reciter of the climate oath.

Afire broke out recently at a Russian nuclear power plant after the country’s military downed a Ukrainian drone, the facility said after the blaze was put out.

The “device detonated” upon impact at the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant in western Russia, sparking a blaze which the facility said “was extinguished by fire crews”.

There were no casualties from the drone smashing down at the site, where capacity was reduced. “The radiation background at the industrial site of the Kursk NPP and the surrounding area has not changed and corresponds to natural levels,” the plant wrote on Telegram.

The International Atomic Energy Agency has repeatedly warned of the dangers of fighting around nuclear plants following Russia’s military offensive on Ukraine in February 2022.

In a significant development, Pakistan has been advised to delay any commitment to gas intake from Turkmenistan under the TurkmenistanAfghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline project until at least 2031, The News reported on Friday.

The recommendation, by international energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie, comes as Pakistan is already facing a surplus of imported LNG, due to a dramatic decline in domestic gas consumption, a senior official from the Ministry of Energy told the scribe.

The advisory has sparked urgent deliberations within the Petroleum Division, where senior officials are now seriously considering either notifying Turkmenistan of a potential deferment or even withdrawing from the $13 billion TAPI gas pipeline.

The warning comes amid growing challenges in managing Pakistan’s existing LNG contracts and infrastructure.