Power Outage [load-shedding] back across country
Businesses bear brunt, want quick remedy
FE Report
With the gradual rise in mercury frequent power outages have become rampant over the past several days, affecting both urban and rural people across the country.
Backup power systems in industries, offices and houses, like - instant power supply (IPS) and uninterrupted power system (UPS), are also failing to provide electricity in absence of enough electricity supply from the national grid. It is happening, as those equipment are not getting required electricity to charge up batteries, consumers alleged.
Saturday's overall electricity generation across the country was around 8,244 megawatts (MW) against the accumulated installed capacity of 13,179 MW of all power plants, according to the state-run Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) statistics.
Technical glitches accounted for around 1,965 MW of electricity load-shedding, while gas supply constraints accounted for around 776 MW, BPDB showed.
According to the official data of BPDB posted on its website, there was, however, no load-shedding of electricity on Saturday.
Businesses are bearing the brunt of the frequent load-shedding, as their industrial output is being severely hampered.
President of Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) Md Shafiul Islam (Mohiuddin) urged the government to build necessary distribution and transmission infrastructure as soon as possible to distribute electricity in line with the production capacity.
"The country has sufficient power production. But the problem is we don't have ample distribution networks that are consistent with the generation capacity. The government took initiatives in this regard, and I hope the problem will be solved very soon," he added.
Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) President Md Siddiqur Rahman said low power generation against increased consumption in the summer raises readymade garments (RMG) production cost.
He said many RMG manufacturers in the country have resorted to diesel-run power generators, while power cuts have added to their woes.
"Factories located in Ashulia, Savar, Gazipur, Rupganj and Narayanganj are suffering at least four hours of power cut daily."
Seeking policy support from the government, the BGMEA president said the country's clothing industry is focusing on employment generation and achieving $ 50 billion export target by 2021.
"If power generation does not meet the industry demand, it will be impossible to attain the target," he further said.
Mohiuddin Mahmud Mahin, president of Bangladesh Finished Leather, Leather Goods and Footwear Exporters Association (BFLLFEA) said they sat with the electricity department officials for ensuring continuous power generation in Savar tannery estate.
"The authority promised us that there will be no load-shedding in the estate. We will see few more days. If the load-shedding continues, we will meet the government high-ups again," he added.
The city dwellers alleged that they are suffering load-shedding sometimes for several hours at a stretch.
People residing in Mirpur, Shewrapara, Kazipara, Khilgaon, Goran, Jatrabari, Dania, Matuail and Demra areas are the worst affected of the electricity outages, alleged some residents.
"Our area was load-shedding free one month ago. But now we are experiencing several hours of power outages in a day," said a resident of Mirpur.
The frequent load-shedding is posing a threat to the government's commitment of keeping 'iftar, tarabi and sehri' timings load-shedding-free in the ensuing Ramadan.
When contacted, BPDB's public relations director Saiful Hasan Chowdhury, however, opined that the electricity supply situation would improve within the next couple of days.
He said some big power plants, including the newly-installed Summit's Bibiyana-II 341-MW power plant, are under maintenance.
He said electricity supply to the extent of around 300-350 MW is being hampered in some northern districts due to damage of the 230 KV (kilo volt) power transmission tower at Bhairab in early this month.
A senior official of state-owned Dhaka Power Distribution Company Ltd (DPDC) said the ever-increasing load sanctions in industries, commercial entities and households are creating extra pressure on the age-old transmission systems, resulting in electricity supply failure.
http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/2017/05/22/71161/Power-load-shedding-back-across-country
Businesses bear brunt, want quick remedy
FE Report
With the gradual rise in mercury frequent power outages have become rampant over the past several days, affecting both urban and rural people across the country.
Backup power systems in industries, offices and houses, like - instant power supply (IPS) and uninterrupted power system (UPS), are also failing to provide electricity in absence of enough electricity supply from the national grid. It is happening, as those equipment are not getting required electricity to charge up batteries, consumers alleged.
Saturday's overall electricity generation across the country was around 8,244 megawatts (MW) against the accumulated installed capacity of 13,179 MW of all power plants, according to the state-run Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) statistics.
Technical glitches accounted for around 1,965 MW of electricity load-shedding, while gas supply constraints accounted for around 776 MW, BPDB showed.
According to the official data of BPDB posted on its website, there was, however, no load-shedding of electricity on Saturday.
Businesses are bearing the brunt of the frequent load-shedding, as their industrial output is being severely hampered.
President of Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) Md Shafiul Islam (Mohiuddin) urged the government to build necessary distribution and transmission infrastructure as soon as possible to distribute electricity in line with the production capacity.
"The country has sufficient power production. But the problem is we don't have ample distribution networks that are consistent with the generation capacity. The government took initiatives in this regard, and I hope the problem will be solved very soon," he added.
Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) President Md Siddiqur Rahman said low power generation against increased consumption in the summer raises readymade garments (RMG) production cost.
He said many RMG manufacturers in the country have resorted to diesel-run power generators, while power cuts have added to their woes.
"Factories located in Ashulia, Savar, Gazipur, Rupganj and Narayanganj are suffering at least four hours of power cut daily."
Seeking policy support from the government, the BGMEA president said the country's clothing industry is focusing on employment generation and achieving $ 50 billion export target by 2021.
"If power generation does not meet the industry demand, it will be impossible to attain the target," he further said.
Mohiuddin Mahmud Mahin, president of Bangladesh Finished Leather, Leather Goods and Footwear Exporters Association (BFLLFEA) said they sat with the electricity department officials for ensuring continuous power generation in Savar tannery estate.
"The authority promised us that there will be no load-shedding in the estate. We will see few more days. If the load-shedding continues, we will meet the government high-ups again," he added.
The city dwellers alleged that they are suffering load-shedding sometimes for several hours at a stretch.
People residing in Mirpur, Shewrapara, Kazipara, Khilgaon, Goran, Jatrabari, Dania, Matuail and Demra areas are the worst affected of the electricity outages, alleged some residents.
"Our area was load-shedding free one month ago. But now we are experiencing several hours of power outages in a day," said a resident of Mirpur.
The frequent load-shedding is posing a threat to the government's commitment of keeping 'iftar, tarabi and sehri' timings load-shedding-free in the ensuing Ramadan.
When contacted, BPDB's public relations director Saiful Hasan Chowdhury, however, opined that the electricity supply situation would improve within the next couple of days.
He said some big power plants, including the newly-installed Summit's Bibiyana-II 341-MW power plant, are under maintenance.
He said electricity supply to the extent of around 300-350 MW is being hampered in some northern districts due to damage of the 230 KV (kilo volt) power transmission tower at Bhairab in early this month.
A senior official of state-owned Dhaka Power Distribution Company Ltd (DPDC) said the ever-increasing load sanctions in industries, commercial entities and households are creating extra pressure on the age-old transmission systems, resulting in electricity supply failure.
http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/2017/05/22/71161/Power-load-shedding-back-across-country