‘Nuclear power to become backbone of clean energy in Bangladesh’

The backbone of clean energy in Bangladesh will be nuclear power, said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s energy adviser Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury.

“We have oil-based small power plants in different places which could be replaced by small modular nuclear reactors,” he said.

The energy adviser made the remarks at a webinar titled ‘New Alternative Energy and Bangladesh’s Future Challenges,’ organised by the Bangladesh Power Management Institute (BPMI), on Saturday.

Chowdhury said the share of clean energy will increase a lot when nuclear power comes. “There is a lot of potential for nuclear power in the long run”.

The energy adviser to the PM said, “We have a land crisis. Therefore, we could instal solar panels on the rivers, water reservoirs. That would be a good solution for us.”

The adviser also mentioned that the government is working to modernise 1-2 million three-wheelers of the country with the help of solar power.

Energy Secretary Anisur Rahman said, “We are in a better position than the Western world in the new situation of globalisation. Also, there are more work opportunities in the power department than in the energy department when it comes to use of renewable energy.”

He criticised the Barapukuria coal-fired power plant, saying it had never been able to generate enough electricity.

“We are able to extract a small amount of coal from the underground mine. Since food security is the first and foremost priority, it is not possible to go for open pit mining.”

The energy secretary said: “Also, it is not possible to run on imported coal. So why did we do it here, I think it would have been better if (power generation) had been coordinated.”

Power Secretary Habibur Rahman said, “Our power usage pattern is different, when we can generate electricity from solar then the demand is less, again the demand increases when power generation from solar is stopped. So how to make storage affordable remains an important issue.”

Hydrogen Energy Laboratory Project Director Abdus Salam thinks the use of hydrogen in vehicles in Bangladesh does enjoy considerable potential. “We think it will cost about 8 taka per kilometer”.

The keynote address was delivered by Professor Nowshad Haque, an expatriate researcher.

She said when solar power started, the cost was $359 per megawatt, now the cost has come down to $37.

“I think it is not possible to ensure fuel security by depending on a specific energy, there should be the usage of different sources,” she added.