Bangladesh eyes massive 9,000MW power import

In a meeting with ADB’s South Asian Affairs director general Takeo Konishi and country director Edimon Ginting at the Bangladesh secretariat conference room, Nasrul Hamid emphasised the importance of increasing ADB-funded projects to improve Bangladesh’s power sector.

It may be mentioned here, the industrial sectors in the country, including the apparel and textile industry, had been negatively impacted due to power issues in the recent past.

The minister also highlighted the potential for ADB assistance in establishing power markets to facilitate electricity trading and export opportunities.

He underscored the need for accurate fuel cost assessment and emphasised ADB’s potential role in this aspect while also highlighting the importance of government and private sector collaboration to maximise resource utilisation, citing initiatives like issuing bonds to reduce subsidies, converting diesel pumps to solar-powered ones, and advancing technology expansion and data centre establishment.

ADB’s significant involvement in Bangladesh’s power sector was highlighted, with $2.57 billion financed in seven projects and approval of two projects worth approximately $360 million in 2023.

Additionally, ongoing projects and those in the pipeline demonstrate continued collaboration between Bangladesh and ADB in advancing the country’s energy infrastructure and sustainability goals.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DR)