No respite from power crisis till September?

The continued power outages in the country seems to be dragging on until September and a highly placed government official hinted so.

Prime Minister's Energy Adviser Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury on Thursday clarified that the existing power crisis will ease in the country by next September if all become frugal in the use of electricity.

"The Russia-Ukraine war has created energy and power crisis in the country. This crisis has also occurred in other countries like Japan, Germany and Australia," he told a press conference after a meeting at the Prime Minister's Office in Dhaka, reports BSS.

Meanwhile, the government on Thursday imposed restriction on all sorts of illumination until further order in order to save electricity.

The adviser said the use of air-conditioner (AC) in markets, shopping malls, mosques, offices and courts should be reduced to save electricity. The temperature of the AC should not be kept below 25 degrees, he added.

He suggested reducing office hours, saying that this will save a lot of electricity,

"The current situation is like a war. If we all work together, we will be able to overcome it," he said and mentioned that the Prime Minister has asked everyone to be economical in electricity use for this reason.

He also said the shopping malls and social events need to be closed by 7 pm. Besides, if office hours are made 9am-3pm, electricity will be saved.

He said that in the current situation, everyone should work consciously to save electricity.

Load shedding will not be more than 500 MW per day if all become frugal in power use, he said, adding that according to the data, 14,500 MW of electricity will be required daily till September if everyone becomes economical in using electricity and it will be possible to reduce this demand to 12,500 MW.

He said that the crisis could escalate if the use of electricity does not reduce.

He also said that action would be taken against those who use fuel and electricity illegally and do not pay their bills on time.    

He said every effort is being made to produce new gas in the country. Petrobangla and the Energy Department are continuing their activities in energy and power generation.