Electricity Supply Will Return to Normal Shortly: Information Adviser
Although it may take up to two years to properly fix the basic issues in Bangladesh’s power and energy industry, residents won’t have to wait that long for a break from the constant load shedding. Dr. Zahed Ur Rahman, Prime Minister’s Adviser on Information and Broadcasting, explained the finance minister’s recent statements during a weekly press briefing in the Secretariat’s Press Information Department conference room. He clarified that this timeline is not an indication that the nation would take two years to return to its previous baseline, pointing out that after the present temporary shortage has been solved, energy supply will likely return to normal stages soon.
According to adviser Mr. Zahed Ur Rahman, ‘We are not claiming that it will take two years for Bangladesh to return to the position it held one, two, three, or four years ago. We have that hope and will soon reach that position’. Within the next 1.5 to 2 years, major infrastructure developments will provide an ongoing supply of electricity in both rural and urban regions. Installing floating storage and regasification units, exploring indigenous gas, completing the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant’s installation, and incorporating Bhola’s gas into the national grid are some of these.
A new floating storage and regasification unit would increase imports of liquefied natural gas within 18 to 24 months, according to the adviser, who emphasized the two-year plan. Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration and Production Company is actively digging and redrilling 150 wells at the same time as a 5-billion-taka project to connect Bhola’s gas to the national grid. In addition, the Rooppur Nuclear Electricity Plant is expected to start trial operations in September, with full-scale electricity production to the national grid expected the following year.
Apart from energy updates, the adviser announced that the Malaysian government has made a policy decision to accept 10,000 new workers for free, including airfare. In contrast to the previous regime’s recruiting syndicate, this decision allows 312 more agencies to function as associate agencies with 25 major agencies. In response to other domestic concerns, he assured that the fertilizer stock is constant at more than 1.2 million metric tons and clarified that figures on missing children indicate a consistent pattern when compared to previous months.
Dr. Zahed Ur Rahman emphasized the importance of journalists’ livelihoods and said that in addition to establishing the Tenth Wage Board and putting the Ninth Wage Board into place, the government will take urgent legal action to reunite the internet and television media. He also said that a 3,000-taka monthly allowance has been set aside for children with special needs, that new legislation is being developed to control battery-powered rickshaws, and that Danish assistance would be used to construct the Laldia Container Terminal.
During the briefing, additional secretary Mr. K. M. Abdul Wadud, deputy principal information officer Mr. Fakhrul Islam, and principal information officer Mr. Syed Abdal Ahmad were among the officials in attendance. The extensive news conference addressed the administration’s multisectoral advancements in media rights, energy, labor welfare, and infrastructure development to promote national economic prosperity while upholding the highest levels of accountability and transparency.
