Experts sceptical about potential of renewable energy in country

Renewable energy cannot be a substitute for base load power plants in Bangladesh and resolve the problems related to this sector, experts at a seminar said yesterday.

The seminar, titled 'New Energy Realities: Building a Resilient and Low Carbon Future’, was organised by the Asia Pacific Business Forum and held at a city hotel.
Speaking on the occasion, Prof. Ainun Nishat, former vice-chancellor of Brac University, said: “If considered on a kilowatt scale, Bangladesh has achieved remarkable success in the renewable sector. Bangladesh has brought about a revolution in the solar energy sector. It has been able to take solar home systems (SHS) to the remotest corners of the country."
"But if we think of electricity on a megawatt or industrial scale, renewable energy cannot be a solution here. This is mainly because of the scarcity of land. For a 100-MW solar plant, we need 500 acres of land. We can't afford such land for producing just 100 MW of electricity," he added.
Standard Chartered Bank CEO Abrar A Anwar said from the investors’ point of view, renewable energy resources were not very good either. "The loan and recovery performance in the independent power producer (IPP) sector is excellent. However, in the renewable sector, it has not been tried and proven as of now. Besides, it is very expensive. The tariffs are very high in the solar industry. So, the situation does not provide much scope for optimism here," he added.
The secretary of the Energy and Mineral Resources Division (EMRD), Nazimuddin Chowdhury, also said solar energy and wind energy were not suitable for Bangladesh.
Describing liquefied natural gas (LNG) as the primary parameter in the country's future energy equation, the EMRD secretary asked the commercial banks to provide patronage to the investors in the LNG sector.
Prof. Badrul Imam, Dhaka University’s professor of petroleum geology, said for a sustainable energy future, Bangladesh has to look to conduct more energy exploration, both onshore and offshore. "There is no other option but to go in for more exploration," he opined.
Mahmood Malik, CEO of Infrastructure Development Company Ltd (IDCOL), Aravinda Kumar Misra, member of the planning commission of Nepal, Dr Arunabha Ghosh, CEO of the Council on Energy, Environment and Water of India, Karma Tshwang, chief engineer of the department of hydropower and power systems of Bhutan, and Kensuke Tanaka, head of Asia Desk, OECD Development Centre, also spoke on the occasion.

Experts sceptical about potential of renewable energy in country

Renewable energy cannot be a substitute for base load power plants in Bangladesh and resolve the problems related to this sector, experts at a seminar said yesterday. The seminar, titled New Energy Realities: Building a Resilient and Low Carbon Future, was organised by the Asia Pacific Business Forum and held at a city hotel. Speaking on the occasion, Prof. Ainun Nishat, former vice-chancellor of Brac University, said: If considered on a kilowatt scale, Bangladesh has achieved remarkable success in the renewable sector. Bangladesh has brought about a revolution in the solar energy sector. It has been able to take solar home systems (SHS) to the remotest corners of the country. But if we think of electricity on a megawatt or industrial scale, renewable energy cannot be a solution here. This is mainly because of the scarcity of land. For a 100-MW solar plant, we need 500 acres of land. We cant afford such land for producing just 100 MW of electricity, he added. Standard Chartered Bank CEO Abrar A Anwar said from the investors point of view, renewable energy resources were not very good either. The loan and recovery performance in the independent power producer (IPP) sector is excellent. However, in the renewable sector, it has not been tried and proven as of now. Besides, it is very expensive. The tariffs are very high in the solar industry. So, the situation does not provide much scope for optimism here, he added. The secretary of the Energy and Mineral Resources Division (EMRD), Nazimuddin Chowdhury, also said solar energy and wind energy were not suitable for Bangladesh. Describing liquefied natural gas (LNG) as the primary parameter in the countrys future energy equation, the EMRD secretary asked the commercial banks to provide patronage to the investors in the LNG sector. Prof. Badrul Imam, Dhaka Universitys professor of petroleum geology, said for a sustainable energy future, Bangladesh has to look to conduct more energy exploration, both onshore and offshore. There is no other option but to go in for more exploration, he opined. Mahmood Malik, CEO of Infrastructure Development Company Ltd (IDCOL), Aravinda Kumar Misra, member of the planning commission of Nepal, Dr Arunabha Ghosh, CEO of the Council on Energy, Environment and Water of India, Karma Tshwang, chief engineer of the department of hydropower and power systems of Bhutan, and Kensuke Tanaka, head of Asia Desk, OECD Development Centre, also spoke on the occasion.