NEW DELHI: Major electricity crisis, declining forex reserves, worsening currency: No, we are not talking about the situation in Pakistan, although it may sound eerily similar.
Weeks after Pakistan suffered a major power crisis, its south Asian neighbour Bangladesh is now going through a similar situation.
According to Reuters, Bangladesh is facing its worst electricity crisis since 2013 due to erratic weather and inability to pay for fuel imports.
In 2023 alone, the country, which is the world’s second-largest garments exporter behind China, has been forced to cut power for 114 days already. That compares with 113 days in all of 2022.
With forecasts for more heatwaves and the peak power-use months of July-October approaching, the country’s power minister recently warned that outages in the south Asian country, home to 170 million people, could continue in the coming days.
Supply was short of demand by as much as 25% early on Monday, the data showed.
The overall supply deficit widened to an average of 15% in the first week of June, an analysis of the data showed, nearly three times the average 5.2% shortfall in May.
Fuel shortage triggers power crisis
A massive shortage of fuel is a key reason behind the coal hungry country’s electricity woes.
On Monday, nearly a fourth of the 11.5 gigawatts (GW) of the country’s gas-fired power plants and about two-thirds of the 3.4 GW of coal-fired capacity were shut for the day because of a lack of fuel, according to the national grid operator’s daily report on its website.
Over 40% of the 7.5 GW of power plants running on diesel and fuel oil could not operate because they lacked fuel, according to the operator.
Bangladesh’s state petroleum firm wrote to the power ministry in late April and early May, warning of inability to pay Sinopec, Indian Oil and Vitol for fuel supplies due to a shortage of US dollars, as well as an “alarming decrease in fuel oil reserves.”
The value of Bangladesh’s taka currency fell by over a sixth during the 12 months through May, and dollar reserves declined by a third to a seven-year low in April.
Power output from coal and liquid fuels has risen at the expense of gas-fired power generation, resulting in higher average power costs, the data showed.
‘This year’s heatwave is unusual’
With temperatures soaring past the 40 degree celsius mark, the long power cuts are testing the patience of nearly 170 million residents of the country.
“We have never seen such a prolonged heatwave since Bangladesh’s independence in 1971,” said Bazlur Rashid, a senior official at the Bangladesh Meteorological Department.
Tens of thousands of primary schools were shut down by the government due to power cuts as demand for air conditioners and fans has surged.
Housewife Tania Akhter said that her youngest child was resting at home with classes cancelled, but her 12-year-old daughter was still going to school.
“Those classes should also be shut down because the students are suffering a lot in this heat — they are falling sick,” Akhter said.
The heatwave began in April and ran into early May before easing, then resumed late last month, with forecasters predicting the mercury will remain high until the end of the week.
“Every summer Bangladesh witnesses heatwaves, but this year’s heatwave is unusual,” Rashid told AFP. “In the past, heatwaves would only continue for a few days or a week, but this year it has continued for two weeks and more.”
A study last month by the World Weather Attribution group found that climate change had made record-breaking deadly heatwaves in Bangladesh — as well as India, Laos and Thailand — at least 30 times more likely.
On June 3, the temperature in the northern Dinajpur district hit 41.3 degrees Celsius (106.3 degrees Fahrenheit), the highest recorded there since 1958.
“The heatwave in the past would affect only some parts of the country,” Rashid added. “This year it is very extensive and spread to almost all parts of the country.”
Power cuts in some rural districts stretch for between six and 10 hours a day, officials from the state-run power company said.
Manual labourers and street vendors say working in the heat is tough, and with those who are able staying out of the sun at home, incomes are down.
“My income has significantly declined; I used to make 20-30 trips a day, but now it is down to 10-15,” said 60-year-old motorised rickshaw driver Abdul Mannan.
“My body doesn’t allow more than this in this heat.”
“It saps all your energy,” said fellow driver Raisul Islam, 35, gulping a lime sherbet drink at a roadside stall in Dhaka. “It is tough to drive rickshaws in the scorching heat.”
Rashid, of the Meteorological Department, said the heatwave would cool once monsoon rains land in mid-June, while the government has said power production will increase in two weeks once fuel imports arrive.
Fruit seller Mohammad Manik, 31, exhausted by the heat, said he was seeing fewer customers in the high temperatures, and was just waiting for the weather to change.
“The situation is very bad in this heat — I spend my day here at work, and when I return home, there are power cuts,” he said.
“So I can’t sleep well, staying awake for almost the whole night.”
(With inputs from agencies)
Weeks after Pakistan suffered a major power crisis, its south Asian neighbour Bangladesh is now going through a similar situation.
According to Reuters, Bangladesh is facing its worst electricity crisis since 2013 due to erratic weather and inability to pay for fuel imports.
In 2023 alone, the country, which is the world’s second-largest garments exporter behind China, has been forced to cut power for 114 days already. That compares with 113 days in all of 2022.
With forecasts for more heatwaves and the peak power-use months of July-October approaching, the country’s power minister recently warned that outages in the south Asian country, home to 170 million people, could continue in the coming days.
Supply was short of demand by as much as 25% early on Monday, the data showed.
The overall supply deficit widened to an average of 15% in the first week of June, an analysis of the data showed, nearly three times the average 5.2% shortfall in May.
Fuel shortage triggers power crisis
A massive shortage of fuel is a key reason behind the coal hungry country’s electricity woes.
On Monday, nearly a fourth of the 11.5 gigawatts (GW) of the country’s gas-fired power plants and about two-thirds of the 3.4 GW of coal-fired capacity were shut for the day because of a lack of fuel, according to the national grid operator’s daily report on its website.
Over 40% of the 7.5 GW of power plants running on diesel and fuel oil could not operate because they lacked fuel, according to the operator.
Bangladesh’s state petroleum firm wrote to the power ministry in late April and early May, warning of inability to pay Sinopec, Indian Oil and Vitol for fuel supplies due to a shortage of US dollars, as well as an “alarming decrease in fuel oil reserves.”
The value of Bangladesh’s taka currency fell by over a sixth during the 12 months through May, and dollar reserves declined by a third to a seven-year low in April.
Power output from coal and liquid fuels has risen at the expense of gas-fired power generation, resulting in higher average power costs, the data showed.
‘This year’s heatwave is unusual’
With temperatures soaring past the 40 degree celsius mark, the long power cuts are testing the patience of nearly 170 million residents of the country.
“We have never seen such a prolonged heatwave since Bangladesh’s independence in 1971,” said Bazlur Rashid, a senior official at the Bangladesh Meteorological Department.
Tens of thousands of primary schools were shut down by the government due to power cuts as demand for air conditioners and fans has surged.
Housewife Tania Akhter said that her youngest child was resting at home with classes cancelled, but her 12-year-old daughter was still going to school.
“Those classes should also be shut down because the students are suffering a lot in this heat — they are falling sick,” Akhter said.
The heatwave began in April and ran into early May before easing, then resumed late last month, with forecasters predicting the mercury will remain high until the end of the week.
“Every summer Bangladesh witnesses heatwaves, but this year’s heatwave is unusual,” Rashid told AFP. “In the past, heatwaves would only continue for a few days or a week, but this year it has continued for two weeks and more.”
A study last month by the World Weather Attribution group found that climate change had made record-breaking deadly heatwaves in Bangladesh — as well as India, Laos and Thailand — at least 30 times more likely.
On June 3, the temperature in the northern Dinajpur district hit 41.3 degrees Celsius (106.3 degrees Fahrenheit), the highest recorded there since 1958.
“The heatwave in the past would affect only some parts of the country,” Rashid added. “This year it is very extensive and spread to almost all parts of the country.”
Power cuts in some rural districts stretch for between six and 10 hours a day, officials from the state-run power company said.
Manual labourers and street vendors say working in the heat is tough, and with those who are able staying out of the sun at home, incomes are down.
“My income has significantly declined; I used to make 20-30 trips a day, but now it is down to 10-15,” said 60-year-old motorised rickshaw driver Abdul Mannan.
“My body doesn’t allow more than this in this heat.”
“It saps all your energy,” said fellow driver Raisul Islam, 35, gulping a lime sherbet drink at a roadside stall in Dhaka. “It is tough to drive rickshaws in the scorching heat.”
Rashid, of the Meteorological Department, said the heatwave would cool once monsoon rains land in mid-June, while the government has said power production will increase in two weeks once fuel imports arrive.
Fruit seller Mohammad Manik, 31, exhausted by the heat, said he was seeing fewer customers in the high temperatures, and was just waiting for the weather to change.
“The situation is very bad in this heat — I spend my day here at work, and when I return home, there are power cuts,” he said.
“So I can’t sleep well, staying awake for almost the whole night.”
(With inputs from agencies)