The government has made significant achievements in recent times in power generation in the country. But the supply of quality electricity at affordable prices has not been ensured as yet. Electricity prices keep rising. In the last 11 years, the price of electricity has increased 10 times. Reportedly, the prices have gone up by 118 per cent at the wholesale level and about 90 per cent at the retail level. If the subsidy injected every year in the sector is considered, the actual price of electricity will be far higher. The issue of high prices of electricity has been discussed at various times, with conscious sections of the society having voiced their concern. This concern is justified. Today’s poor situation in the power sector is because of inefficiency, irregularities and murkiness in policy adoption. A small quarter is benefiting from this but the customers are losing. It is urgent to change the situation.
The price of electricity mainly depends on the initial fuel price. For good reason, almost all countries have plans for their respective power sector centring energy availability from domestic sources. Because, they know that it is not possible to supply electricity at affordable prices by producing it with imported fuel. Electricity prices are lower in many European countries, including Germany. Even neighbouring India is generating electricity from domestic fuels, including natural gas, coal, water resources, and solar energy, and delivering it to consumers at affordable prices. The strategy was once the same in our country. Relying on low-cost natural gas, we kept the wheel of the economy running smoothly for a long time. By 2010, the gas crisis had a devastating effect on the energy sector, causing an increased dependence on imported fuel. The government continues moving towards power generation by importing LNG. The international LNG market often fluctuates. Experts are sceptical about the affordable price of electricity generated with imported LNG. Therefore, they are emphasising domestic sources of fuel, instead of the imported fuel.
Despite the increase in the country’s production capacity, frequency and voltage fluctuations, frequent and unexpected power outages are a constant problem in the power sector. As a result, consumers are not getting quality electricity. In this context, the government has given importance to the distribution system and transmission infrastructure. Various projects have been undertaken for construction of grid substations, substations for power distribution and construction of transmission lines. But in this case, critical issues such as how much transmission line is needed, how much improvement is needed in the distribution system and its exact demand have not been calculated. Companies are apparently benefiting from the development of transmission and distribution infrastructure. The victims are the state and the people. So, it is important to ensure transparency and accountability in this respect.
Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission has been authorised to control prices in the power sector. We see that many times the price of electricity is being increased by bypassing the body. The authority concerned organises a so-called public hearing to restructure the power prices. At the hearing, consumers show the way to reduce the prices. But those suggestions are ignored. On the contrary, the price of electricity has increased repeatedly under the direction of the ministry. The role and jurisdiction of the commission is, hence, in question. Today, the crisis like irregularities and corruption in the power sector is strong. The power sector has become a new field of making profit for some private sector entrepreneurs only. It cannot be allowed to continue like this. It is expected that the government will take effective initiatives to protect consumer interests by establishing good governance and accountability in the sector.
