Solar power
Bright days ahead
FAISAL MAHMUD
Despite the remarkable success in the installation of solar home systems (SHS) across rural Bangladesh, solar power is yet to be considered a viable option for base load electricity in the country.
Because of the lack of innovation and strategic market plans, solar energy has so far failed to establish itself as a feasible alternative to the dwindling gas reserves.
To take the countrys solar energy sector into a fast lane, a new alliance named Solar Module Manufacturers Association of Bangladesh (SMMAB) was formed on March 1.
The members of the association said they will come up with innovative plans to popularise the use of solar energy in Bangladesh.
Prospects for solar energy
Talking to The Independent, SMMAB president Munawar Misbah Moin said the countrys present demand for solar power was 60 MW. In contrast, nine companies in the country have the ability to produce 100 MW of solar power, meaning that the producers have the ability to meet the demand.
The problem is that the local companies cant survive with the competition from imported panels owing to unbalanced price of the products. High tariffs should be imposed on the imported panels to keep this potential domestic sector alive, Moin argued.
He proposed 30 to 40 per cent tariffs on imported panels with 70 to 80 per cent supplementary tariffs. The government has to realise that MW-level solar projects require big investment and it would be hard to take these from our own resources. The government can explore the possibility of getting money from the Green Climate Fund, he added.
Moin suggested that the government should create a favourable investment environment along with a concrete policy and fixed tariffs. Such an environment and policy would attract investors to invest in Bangladesh, he said.
Bangladesh Bank needs to be empowered to play a bigger role in green financing. We are glad to hear that the apex bank is embarking on a USD 200-million green fund at below 5 per cent fund cost, he added.
Large-sized solar power plants need large tracts of land to install solar panels. In Bangladesh, uncultivable land was hardly available, and hence the shortage of barren land was a significant constraint for setting up large-scale solar plants, he observed.
However, large-sized solar power plants were being installed in haor/ char/non-agricultural land in Bangladesh.
Innovation is the key
The minister of state for power, energy and mineral resources, Nasrul Hamid, said that he has personally signed a total of 52 solar power projects in the past two years, yet none of these have been implemented so far.
There are still several problems with solar power in Bangladesh. The main problem is that people think it is expensive, the minister said.
Hamid said the price of solar electricity was on a downward trend in many countries. This was happening because of innovations in their business models. We should start doing that, he added.
Giving an example, he said rooftops in Dhaka city could be excellent places for solar power generation. Just imagine that all the roofs of Dhaka have solar panels and they produce electricity. The government will buy electricity from them. As module manufacturers, one can offer them attractive packages so that they would be motivated to install solar panels, he added.
The minister disclosed that an Indian company had recently approached the ministry with a plan to replace all the streetlights of Dhaka with solar-powered streetlights. They gave us the proposal to do it free of cost. They will charge us money after five years and that money will be given from the savings that the city corporations are going to make by not paying hefty bills for the electricity for the streetlights, he explained.
Hamid said renewable energy was the key to achieving the governments power sector goals of the production as well as the use of green and clean energy. Our government will give every possible support to the investors. Facilities are already being provided to develop and expand the solar power sector, he added.
However, Bangladeshi solar module manufacturers have been unable to capitalise on that opportunity till now, said Mizanur Rahman Joddar, executive director of Bangladesh Bank.
We need more technological development to ensure maximum use of solar energy. Besides, there is a need to ensure different kinds of financial incentives. Bangladesh Bank has already undertaken various programmes to increase the use of environment-friendly fuel. We are interested in providing necessary support for the development of this sector, Joddar added.
Big plans for big push
Anwarul Islam Shikdar, chairman of Sustainable and Renewable Energy Development Authority (SREDA), said the government has set a target of producing 3,168 MW power from renewable energy by 2021, including 1,740 MW from solar power, 1,370 MW from wind and the remaining from biomass-based power generation technologies.
The government has approved a proposal for setting up a 200-MW solar park, the largest-ever grid-connected renewable energy project in Bangladesh, on a build-own-operate (BOO) basis in Teknaf, he added.
SunEdison will develop the project. This is a very good initiative towards achieving the goal. We are optimistic that the government will create a congenial investment atmosphere to attract both local and foreign developers to come and invest in MW solar plants in Bangladesh, he added.
The government is also inviting privately sponsored solar projects. The response has been very positive till now. About 40 private companies have submitted their proposals, totalling more than 1000MW. Hence, I strongly believe that it is possible to produce 1,740 MW power by solar plants, he said.
