Opinion
Bangladesh must improve its energy situation
In Bangladesh, the per capita energy consumption is relatively low. It is one of the country's formidable development challenges. The present rate of consumption has been constraining Bangladesh's efforts towards attracting sizeable FDI, accelerating rural development and improving the quality of life of Bangladeshis, to mention a few. Further, the country needs what I would call a 'power driven predominantly privatized economy' for its meaningful participation in the globalization process and in the free market. The term 'power' refers to steam power, water power, wind power, gas power and other power agencies (= used in an engineering sense and not in an organizational sense or otherwise). The factors involved in the country's energy equation have both intra and inter-generational implications. Bangladesh, in one hand, is required to create and meet energy demand at the level that could facilitate a speedier economic growth and human development, among others. It is required, on the other hand, to establish initial conditions for the future generation to meet their energy requirement on a continuing basis. Energy has the power to empower Bangladeshis economically, politically, socially and intellectually. It can help build the future of Bangladesh on a solid foundation. A higher rate of per capita energy consumption could assist Bangladeshis in their fight against poverty, law and order situation, corruption, distribution-related disparities and other developmental deficiencies. But the bad news is: it can de-accelerate the country's progress, if not managed properly. An energy based approach to national development, if poorly managed, can help promote, among other things, a culture of easy-money making. Interesting though, there exists a relationship between energy centred development and good governance. A wide gap between the two or a shortfall on both counts can, among other things, affect a country's developmental effort. It is one of the reasons why a number of energy rich world countries are still struggling to cope with their developmental challenges at the basic level. Bangladesh would need, among other things, a sound strategy, a more productive management system, a bunch of good management practices and above all, cooperation, as well as commitments of all concerned to deal with its energy related challenges and opportunities. The strategy mentioned should inter alia be holistic, futuristic, pragmatic, result-oriented, and conducive to power driven economic developments. A productive management of the country's - energy future, energy requirement, energy reserve, energy utilization, energy re-cycling, energy politics, energy diplomacy, energy trade, energy security, energy-environment nexus and energy potential for development - could ensure a quicker and optimal return on its energy related investments. It is expected that the people of Bangladesh and the political parties (both within and outside of the government) would jointly take appropriate measures for ensuring a better management of the country's energy resources, including gas. The decision on whether or not to export gas (unprocessed or processed?) to India should, among other things, be time sensitive, opportunity driven, forward looking, optimal return-oriented and satisfying to Bangladeshis. The decision should be taken on hard realities and not on emotional premises, and in a non partisan manner. In this connection, I would like to re-emphasize here my earlier suggestion on holding a national referendum on gas export (it was published in a number of English dailies of Bangladesh in the recent past). If the suggestion is acceptable to all concerned, it is hoped the government, the political parties, the donors and civil society would, prior to the referendum, explain to the people of Bangladesh in more concrete terms about the comparative advantages of say, exportation of gas to India. It would then help them to take a more informed decision in pertinent areas in the event of referendum mentioned. Bangladesh would need to consider inter alia various renewable and non renewable energy options and pertinent technology alternatives in its effort to improve the energy situation. In this respect, wind, solar and wave could, among others, be potential candidates for consideration, relative to time, space, resource level, comparative advantage, affordability and return on investment. Present day wind turbines are less noisy, more reliable and capable of generating more power at a lower cost. They can be monitored even from remote locations. It has been made possible by connecting a set of sensors (outfitted with the turbines) with a network that enables the remote monitoring of turbines say, from a lap top. For the wind direction and force, the turbines now-a-days depend on an electronic system which can predict that approximately a day in advance. The adjustment of the orientation of the rotor, as well as the pitch of individual blades can be made on the basis of the above prediction for maximum efficiency and output. For practical reasons, wind turbines should be supported by a back up system because they can not be fully relied upon for a continuous supply of power to consumers. Further, the turbines generally need supply power to operate. Wind is an environment friendly energy source. Bangladesh should explore the feasibility of harnessing wind power especially for empowering rural Bangladesh and Bangladeshis. It can seek technical or non-technical (or both) advices from local experts, countries that are currently using wind power with success and world renowned companies that are involved in the turbine business, such as: the General Electric (GE), the biggest domestic turbine manufacturer in the US. The bottom line is: Bangladesh can no longer afford a 'wait and see' strategy for bringing about drastic improvements in its energy sector; the time is overdue for the country to act more aggressively and decisively in the pursuit of a higher level energy outcome.
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