Load-shedding to vanish by end of next month?

Amid growing public sufferings due to scheduled power cuts, State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid on Sunday clarified that the load shedding may not continue by the end of September.

"We are in crisis due to the global situation. This is a temporary problem. If the global situation becomes normal, we will go to the better position," he said, reports UNB

The junior minister was addressing a seminar as the chief guest at Bidyut Bhaban in Dhaka.

Forum for Energy Reporters of Bangladesh (FERB) organized the seminar on "Energy Security in Bangladesh: Volatile International Market", remembering Bangabandhu's contribution to the power and energy sector, with its chairman Shamim Jahangir in the chair.

Noting that the government will adjust the fuel price if it decreases in the international markets, Nasrul said, "This price may need to be adjusted several times in the next few months. Everyone should stand together during this time. Lengthy discussions will bring no outcome during this challenging period".

There is lacking in government efforts to tackle the crisis, he said, adding, "We were in a good situation even a few months ago. Then the fuel was cheaper, but the price has now soared".

Mentioning that the oil-fired power plants have no capacity charge, the state minister said the plants, which now remain closed, will be used in emergency situation.

Executive Director of FERB Rishan Nasrullah moderated the seminar while FERB former chairman and Editor of the Energy and Power Magazine Mollah Amzad presented the keynote paper in the seminar.

Senior Secretary of the Energy and Mineral Resources Division Md Mahbub Hossain, Bangladesh Oil, Gas and Mineral Corporation (Petrobangla) Chairman Nazmul Ahsan, Professor Shamsul Alam, Professor Badrul Imam, economist Dr Mahfuz Kabir and senior journalists Shahnaj Begum, Sadrul Hasan and Shahed Siddiqui spoke at the seminar, among others.