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Pandemic, shutdown impact: BD's electricity use drops by 4,000 MW

| Updated: June 26, 2020 16:35:27


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Coronavirus pandemic and resultant low demand of power and energy have reduced around 4,000 MW of electricity and 300 mmcfd of natural gas consumption across the country.

"Currently, the country's electricity consumption could have been around 14,000 megawatts (MW), if the coronavirus outbreak did not spread and overall electricity consumption did not fell," the state-run Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) Chairman Md Belayet Hossain told the FE.

The country's overall electricity consumption is currently hovering around 10,500 MW due to lower than expected consumption, he said.

Natural gas consumption could have been around 3,300 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd), if the coronavirus pandemic was not there, said a senior official of the state-run Petrobangla.

Overall natural gas consumption, including re-gasified LNG (liquefied natural gas), is now around 3,000 mmcfd.

Earlier, industries and commercial operations were shut for over two months of the nationwide shutdown until May 30.

Restrictions on almost all types of transportations including air, rail and public transports as well as movement of private vehicles were also restricted with the exception of some critical travel services.

Almost all types of gas-based industries and factories were also shuttered during the nationwide shutdown, imposed for slowing the spread of coronavirus outbreak.

Only the gas-guzzling power plants were operational with limited output due to lower electricity demand across the country, which fell by around 30 per cent on an average to around 7,000 MW, according to the BPDB.

More than half of Bangladesh's natural gas demand comes from the power sector. Natural gas demand slipped by around one-third to 2,130 mmcfd as the consequence.

After May 31, public and private offices are functioning in a limited scale, which will continue until June 30 by following the health safety guidelines.

Plying of public transports also resumed in a limited scale by maintaining proper health hygiene.

Electricity consumption in industries fell by around 50 per cent and in commercial entities by around 40 per cent during the shutdown, said a senior official of the state-owned Dhaka Electricity Supply Company Ltd (DESCO).

Electricity consumption in households, however, increased by around 15 per cent during the period.

Although the nationwide shutdown is over, electricity consumption did not rise to the usual level due to limited-scale operations of industries and commercial entities, he added.

The BPDB and the Petrobangla had to count extra costs due to lower than expected consumption of electricity and natural gas in the form of capacity payment or rental charge, insiders said.

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