EditorMollah M Amzad Hossain

Advisory EditorAnwarul Islam TarekMortuza Ahmad FaruqueMunjurul H Khan

International EditorDr. Nafis Ahmed

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Managing EditorAfroza HossainMagazine AdministratorAKM Shamsul Hoque

ReportersMd. Nuruzzaman DelowarArunima Hossain

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Whatever a section of civil society activists think or do Rampal power plant is arelaity now and soon the physical construction of the plant would start. We haveno definite information about the source of coal supply or agreement done forlong term coal supply. We belive that all risks management and risks assesmenthas been carried out and contingency management plan is ready at hand. Let ushope that no time will be wasted in delays unncessarily at any stage. No time willbe wasted in contract negotiations for coal supply, shipping and transhippingarrangements, equipment delivery and construction. We hope plant engineers andoperators will be provided extensive training for capacity development across allsegments of coal supply value chain. NTPC is the lead partner duringenginnering, construction and commissioing of the plant. There must be BPDBpresence at every level as joint venture partner. DOE must do the policingresponsibility for ensuring and enfocring compliance of environmental safegurads.We wish success of an environmental friendly Rampal Coal Fired Power Plant.

Fortnightly Magazine, Vol 14, Issue 3, July 16-31

Coal is without any doubt thedirtiest among the fossil fuels.But in technical analysis it doesnot support claims that coalfired power plant would destroySundarban, Even if all theplanned coal fired power plantsare constructed beside Sundar-ban the planned technologywould ensure release of SOXand NOX within tolerance lim-its. Hence these must not be anycause of concern.

Power shortage has remained aperennial problem in Bangladeshfor decades, and is still continu-ing; and may well remain so forpossibly decades more. Thereappears to be little or no scopefor any relief from it. Basicallythe reason behind; is the govern-ment's lack of real determinationand will, to find sources of morefuel from free local (non-conven-tional) sources; that is awaitingexploitation...

At long last EPC contract for Rampal PowerPlant, the much talked about plant in theproximity of the Sundarban Mangrove forestwas concluded between project companyBangladesh-India Friendship Power Com-pany Ltd (BIFPCL) and India’s state-runBharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) on 12July 2016. BHEL will complete the construc-tion and bring the US$ 1.49 Billion plant tocommercial operation within 36 months ofsigning the agreement. The physical con-struction of the plant is expected to startwithin the next three to four months...

43 33 9

Encouraged by the readers and patrons, the EP would continue bringingout Green Pages to contribute to the country’s efforts in its journeytowards environment-friendly energy.

29 100,000 Low-Income

Families to Get Solar

Energy

31 Amu for Global Efforts to

Help Develop Green

Industry

31 Sylhet Power Efficiency

Project

32 India to Get $1b from

World Bank for Modi's

Solar Goals

5 WORLD WATCH

Latest Development in

World

6,7 SNAPSHOT

Latest Development

9 COVER

Rampal Power Plant Gets

Rolling

15 COVER ARTICLE

‘Rampal Power Plant to Help

Conserve Sundarbans’

19 SPECIAL REPORT

Germany Overhauls Flagship

Energy Policy

REPORT

20 Cabinet Clears Draft Deal on

Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant

21 Deal Signed to Build 1320MW

Rampal Power Plant

22 BPC Imports Refined

Petroleum Products at Lower

Prices

23 Dhaka Keen to Import 500MW

More Power from India

25 Dhaka-Ctg Oil Pipeline in 3

Years

26 Gas Turbines from MAN

Strengthen Foothold in China

27 Chevron, Partners Finalize

$37bn Investment for Tengiz

Oil Field

ARTICLE

35 Ways For Permanently

Reducing Electric Power

Shortage in Bangladesh

37 Integrated Gasification

Combine Cycle

CLIMATE

39 50,000 Sign Petition Urging

UNESCO to Protect World’s

Largest Mangrove Forest

40 Climate Change Warming

Asian Waters, Altering

Monsoon

TECHNOLOGY

41 CO2-Free Public Transport

in Geneva

INTERVIEW

43 Dr Kazi Bayezid Kabir,

Associate Professor,

Chemical Engineering

Department, BUET

Global EnergyInfrastructureLtd (GEIL) ofTurkey andQatargas re-

cently announced signing of about $22 billion agreement forimport of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) to Pakistan for 20years.

A statement issued by the GEIL, a company of Global EnergyGroup of Turkey, said it “concluded a 20-year long-term LNGSale and Purchase Agreement (SPA) with Qatargas, a com-pany owned by State of Qatar, for supply of LNG/RLNG toPakistan’s market, on private-to-private basis.”

GEI Pakistan (GEIP), the local company of the Group, is set-ting up an LNG regasification terminal at Port Qasim LNGZone, on a site procured from the Port Qasim Authority(PQA).

The terminal will be completed in the first half of 2018.

Following the terminal completion, LNG procured fromQatargas will be imported into Pakistan and re-gasified tomeet demands of the local market for the next 20 years.

“This agreement represents the single largest private interna-tional contract to be signed for Pakistan,” said the statement.

$22bn Deal Signed forSupply of LNG to Pakistan

US crude oil pro-duction duringApril amounted to8.933 million b/d,a decline of 2.5%

from the March average and 7.9% from the April 2015 aver-age, according to the US Energy Information Administration’slatest monthly production survey.

Reflecting the drop, oil output in Texas during April was down1.4% month-over-month and 10% year-over-year to 3.23 mil-lion b/d. North Dakota recorded production of 1.04 millionb/d, down 6% month-over-month and 10.6% year-over-year.

Output from the federal US Gulf of Mexico fell 3% month-over-month in April to 1.589 million b/d, still 3.5% higherthan its year-ago average.

EIA: US Oil Output Fell8% in April

5

Worldwatch

July 16, 2016

Gas SouthJSC (PetroVietnam GasSouth) andG a z p r o m

Fuel Transportation (PVGazprom NGV) are cooperating underan agreement signed on June 21 to increase the use of naturalgas by Vietnam’s transportation sector.

The focus will initially be on increased deployment of naturalgas vehicles (NGVs) in Ho Chi Minh City, followed by neigh-boring provinces and eventually spreading throughout the coun-try.

According to Gazprom, the JV includes the construction andcommissioning of natural gas liquefaction units, cryogenic andmulti-fuel filling stations, refueling terminals for water transport;LNG delivery, storage and regasification systems; vehicle re-equipment and technical maintenance points, and other gas-engine infrastructure objects for servicing vehicles andmachinery fueled by natural gas.

Ho Chi Minh City will have approximately 150 compressed nat-ural gas (CNG) fueled buses operating by end of 2016. Some2,700 buses are currently operating on 137 routes across thecity; the majority of these buses are old vehicles that run ondiesel fuel and produce a lot of air pollution.

Vietnam to Stimulate NGVSector with Gazprom

The center is exploringreviving the shelvedMyanmar-Bangladesh-India gas pipeline totransport gas from Russiaas a part of its ambitious

Rs 1,30,000 crore plan to make the northeastern part of thecountry a 'hydrocarbon hub' in next 15 years with an eye oncapturing the energy market in Bhutan, Myanmar and otherSouth East Asian countries.

Union minister of petroleum and natural gas, DharmendraPradhan said here on Friday that the roadmap for pumping inthe first installment of Rs 6000 crore of the total investment inthe current financial year has already been prepared.

"We will be bringing in gas from Russia and we are still search-ing for a viable route and one such route is the Myanmar-Bangladesh-India route. Numaligarh Refinery Limited (inGolaghat district) has already started supplying diesel toBangladesh. We are looking for new markets now in Bhutan,Myanmar and South East Asian countries," Pradhan said.

Pradhan said that the center is carrying out its 'HydrocarbonVision 2030' for the region to make the region a petroleumhub, which aims to double the region's oil and natural gas out-put, increase the refining capacities and expanding productpipelines.

Delhi May ReviveMyanmar-BD-IndiaGas Pipeline

Korea GasCorpora t ion(KOGAS) is re-portedly con-

sidering a project to construct a pipeline to transport natural gasfrom Iran to Oman.

The pipeline would be approximately 400 km in length, with a200-km onshore section between Rudan to Mobarak Mount inthe southern Hormozgan province in Iran, and a 200-km off-shore section onwards to Sohar Port in Oman.

Local news sources have reported that KOGAS could sign amemorandum of understanding or a framework agreement forthe US$1.5 billion project with project partners before June. Thenews sources also reported that feasibility studies for the offshoresection of the pipeline are expected to be complete by mid-

KOGAS to Construct Iranto Oman Pipeline

2016.

The pipeline would aid Iran in its plan to export LNG to Europeand Asia, and it is proposed that a third of the gas from thepipeline would be liquefied at Oman’s 10.4 MMt/a Qalhat LNGplant for this.

A Thai com-pany hasproposed toset up an-

other floating LNG terminal with re-gasification capacity of500mmcfd per day from imported LNG within 14 months atMoheshkhaki in Cox’s Basar district.

The Thai-based firm Siamgas and Petrochemicals Public Com-pany Ltd made the proposal to set up the terminal, the secondof its kind in Bangladesh, at Moheshkhali for enhancing sup-ply of fossil fuel in the national grid from imported LNG.

The company made the proposal at a time when an US-basedmultinational company got a job order to set up similar float-ing terminal at Moheshkhali within 23 months.

The country at present has a shortage of 600mmcfd of gas,and to make up the gap against the demand, the government

has already ap-proved a proposalfor setting up a LNGterminal at Mo-heshkhali with re-g a s i f i c a t i o ncapacity of500mmcfd per dayfrom imported LNG.

Thai Firm Interested to SetUp Second LNG Terminal

A total of 525megawatts (MW)electricity could beproduced from ex-tractable coals ofB a r a p u k u r i a

coalmine, State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Re-sources Nasrual Hamid told parliament recently.

"The work on setting up one more 275-MW unit of the 250-MW Barapukuria Coal-fired Power Plant is going on," he saidwhile replying to a question from treasury bench memberShamshul Haque Chowdhury of Chittagong-12.

The state minister said that a total of 1.0 million tonnes of coalis being lifted from Barapukuria Coal Mine every year, ofwhich, the power plant is using 60-65 percent of total ex-tracted coals.

Barapukuria CoalmineMay Fuel Generating525 MW Power

6

Snapshot

July 16, 2016

The newly con-structed Barisalwater treatmentplant is now

facing an acute power crisis. Even after completion of all thework at the plant, pure drinking water cannot be supplied tothe city’s population owing to lack of power supply.

Earlier, the plant faced the serious threat of the KirtonkholaRiver erosion. West Zone Power Division Co Ltd (WZPDCO)said it would not supply power to the plant, as the Barisal CityCorporation (BCC) is yet to clear huge amounts of dues.

The plant is capable of supplying 1.6 crore gallons of freshwater every day. Its 14 pumps, which have the capacity to op-erate for a minimum of 75 hours, are lying unused becauseof the power crisis.

Water Treatment PlantPlagued by Power Crisis

Security has been beefedup in over 100 powerstations across the coun-try after the overnight

siege at a café in the city’s Gulshan area that left 28 peopledead and many injured.

“I have instructed the officials of 70 public power stations tointensify their security measures after the incident,” BPDB of-ficials said.

They also instructed around 35 private power stations to en-sure the security of their power plants to avoid any untowardincidents.

Foreign engineers and employees working at different powerplants are safe. Besides, Petrobangla has already strengthenedthe security at different gas fields.

Security Beefed Upin Power Plants

For the first time in the coun-try’s history, BangladeshPower Development Board(BPDB) generated electricity

beyond the 9000-megawatt (MW) recently.

The BPDB generated 9036-megawatt (MW) electricity in theevening, breaking its previous record of producing the highestvolume of electricity in a single day.

BPDB Director, PR, Saiful Hasan Chowdhury confirmed thatthis was the highest ever generation of power by the organi-zation. However, incidents of load shedding were reportedfrom different parts of the country.

BPDB GeneratesRecord Power

P r e s i d e n tA b d u lHamid hasurged the

Danish entrepreneurs to invest in various potential sectors, in-cluding energy, shipbuilding and ICT, in Bangladesh for mu-tual benefit of the two countries.

The President made the call when Danish Ambassador toBangladesh Hanne Fugl Eskjaer paid a farewell call on him atBangabhaban in the city recently.

During the meeting, Abdul Hamid expressed satisfaction asthe envoy successfully completed her assignment inBangladesh and said during her tenure the bilateral relationsbetween the two countries have been extended significantly.

Mentioning that Bangladesh diplomatic mission in Copen-hagen started functioning in June 2015, Hanne Fugl Eskjaersaid it will play an important role to develop relations be-tween Denmark and Bangladesh.

President Seeks MoreInvestment from Denmark

7

Snapshot

July 16, 2016

BNP ChairpersonKhaleda Zia recentlyfiled a petition withSupreme Court against

the proceedings of Bara-pukuria coal mine graftcase.

Her lawyer AM MahbubUddin Khokon filed theleave to appeal petitionchallenging the HighCourt verdict thatcleared way for the caseproceedings to continuein a lower court.

The High Court on Sep-tember 16 last year dis-missed the BNPchairperson’s plea toscrap the case and also

lifted a stay order on the continuation of the case proceedings.

The leave to appeal petition will be placed before the cham-ber judge court of the Supreme Court for hearing soon,Khokon said.

Khaleda Files Pleain Barapukuria Case

T h ed e a d -line fors u b -

mission of the tender floated to build 10 oil-based powerplants has been extended by a month in the wake of calls todo so by local private entrepreneurs.

On May 19, the Power Development Board (PDB) floated thetender to select contractors for the 10 furnace oil-fired powerplants and set June 29 as the deadline for making bids.

The plants are to be set up in 10 different locations under theprivate sector power generation policy on the basis of build-own-operate (BOO) method.

“The deadline has been extended from June 29 to July 28. Thenew plants will have a combined electricity generation ca-pacity of 1,000MW, 100MW each,” said a PDB official.

Tender Deadline for Oil-BasedPlants Now July 28

The gov-ernmenthas noplans to

reduce power tariffs as cost ofproduction continued to behigher than rates at which it issold, says State Minister for En-ergy and Power NasrulHamid.

He told parliament recentlythat they have sought a Tk 50billion budgetary support forpower sector in the upcomingfiscal year.

A fall in global oil prices haveled to a drop in cost of powergeneration cost from Tk 6.27per unit to Tk 5.60, Hamid in-

formed the House. "But it's still Tk 0.7 higher than the currenttariff. So, there are no plans for an immediate rate revision."

Replying to an MP's query, the minister said that the govern-ment has adopted a long-term plan to ensure constant powersupply. He said it plans to generate 24,000 MW power gen-eration by 2021, 40,000 MW by 2030 and 60,000 MW by2041.

Govt Not Considering PowerTariffs Cut, Minister Tells JS

Nasrul Hamid

Begum Khaleda Zia

9

Cover

July 16, 2016

At long last EPC contract for Ram-pal Power Plant, the much talkedabout plant in the proximity of

the Sundarban Mangrove forest wasconcluded between project companyBangladesh-India Friendship PowerCompany Ltd (BIFPCL) and India’s state-run Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL)on 12 July 2016. BHEL will completethe construction and bring the US$ 1.49Billion plant to commercial operationwithin 36 months of signing the agree-ment. The physical construction of theplant is expected to start within the nextthree to four months. The proposedpower plant will have two units of660MW that will generate power forlocal consumption. Environmentalistsand a section of civil society were agi-tating for a long time protesting againstthe plant for its perceived environmentalimpacts on the eco system and bio di-versity of the Sundarban mangrove for-est. The largest mangrove forest is anUNESCO world heritage site. The plantlocation is 14km away from the edge ofthe Sundarbans.

It may be mentioned here that BPDBand NTPC the state owned enterprisesof Bangladesh and India entered into50:50 joint venture agreement for im-plementing this Maitree (Friendship)power plant in 2010. It took more than6 years in preparatory works for bring-ing the project to the present stage. Asper agreement BPDB and NTPC eachwill account for 30% of the project cost.The remaining 70% will come from In-dian Government lending arm EXIMBank as loan to EPC contractor BHEL.

The environmentalists and left leaningpolitical activists have concerns that thepower plant in the proximity of themangrove forest may create irreversibleenvironmental and social risks and im-pacts. They think that these im-pacts may be caused byincreased coal transportationvessels movement, dredging re-quired for maintaining naviga-bility, air and water pollution.There are some perceptions thatcoal fired power plants maycause harmful emissions ofCO2, SO2 and other toxic gases

which may harm wild life and human inthe immediate surrounding .

However, the EIA prepared for the proj-ect and approved with certain condi-tions by DOE Bangladesh haveaddressed all these concerns. It nowneeds to be seen whether the powerplant is designed, built and operated ob-serving all the risks and impacts man-agements safeguards minimizing theimpacts as much as practicable . A mod-ern coal fired power plant using ultrasuper critical technology, addingFGD,NOX, SOX emissions minimizingdevices can ensure almost zero emis-sions. The right choice and applicationof effluent and water treatment can min-imize water pollution almost to a negli-gible limit .But given the location ofplant at Rampal Bagerhat and absenceof required draft of Mongla port thetransportation of 4.72 million tons ofcoal per year may require intensivemonitoring during transshipment. How-ever, senior officials from bothBangladesh and India yesterday con-tended that the coal plants will have lit-tle or no impact on the forest, sayingthey will use the latest technology tomitigate pollution and are followingstringent environmental guidelines,Bangladeshi laws and internationalstandards. This write up will try to lookat the matter in its real perspectivesmaintaining objectivity.

Coal Fired Power Generation& ImpactsThere is no denial that coal is the dirtiestof all fossil fuel those are used for powergeneration. Irrespective of that coal foryears in the past and possibly for severalyears into the future will contribute asthe fuel of choice in many countries. Al-though clean coal technology has notyet provided all proof evidences of zero

emissions yet advanced technologieslike Super Critical and Ultra super criti-cal methods, FGD have significantlyminimized emissions. These days mod-ern coal fired power plants hardly causeatmospheric and water pollutions. Veryrecently a twenty members Bangladeshisenior officials of the Ministry of Power,Energy &Mineral Resources (MPEMR)during their visit of NRG operated coalfired power plant at Gladstone Queens-land have eye witnessed how a profes-sionally managed coal fired power plantcatered for environmental and socialimpacts management? The black coalused for the power plant is transportedby train and track, stored in a very safeand environment friendly manner toavoid run off. The water used for thepower generation after use is released tothe nearby stream in such a manner thatit remains as good as or better than nat-ural stream. Australia’s favorite fishBaramundi grows in lakes and waterways surrounding the plant. Peoplecome for boating and pleasure ride. Thesub critical technology used even en-sures near zero emissions.

Technology Would Address SOX,NOX Emissions ConcernsRampal Power plant is set to usinghigher quality (higher heating value,low ash and low sulfur coal). We havenoted that there was plan for setting upa super critical plant at Rampal in ac-cordance with EIA 2013 but no compul-sion was there for FGD plant inaccordance with EIA 2013. Governmentrealizing later of the requirement for re-stricting emissions and minimizing im-pacts has now planned forultra-supercritical technology. FGDplant and low SOX burner have beenmade mandatory. Inclusion of FGD willbring down SOX in Rampal area from9.1 microgram/cubic meter to 1.5 mi-

crogram/cubic meter. The per-missible level as per Bangladeshenvironment is 80microgram/cubic meter. HenceSOX will have no issues at allfrom Rampal plant. The air inRampal and Sundarban areanow has 18 microgram/ cubicmeter NOX. The commissioningof power plants in the area

11July 16, 2016

would add another 4microgram/cubic meter. But environ-ment law 1997 permissible limit is100 microgram/cubic meter.

Effluent Treatment Will ManageWater PollutionWe find no reason why it cannot limitemissions into the air and effluentbelow acceptable limits. Water used forplant operation and runoff water fromcoal storage will be contained inside theplant area and treated to condition asgood as or better than the surroundingstream water before release. Hencethere must not be unnecessary concernabout water pollution. Moreover, dryash cooler method is going to be usedat Rampal plant. This will reduceamount of water use in any case. Coalwill have covered storage facility. Theremust not be any concern of flying coalparticles polluting the air or water.

Wind Blows In Opposite DirectionMost of the Year We have seen from research data thatonly three-four months of the year wind

blows from plant locations towards Sun-darban. Even at that period the emis-sions to the air under acceptable limitwould not harm the forest. About 30-45days annual overhauling of the plantcan be scheduled during this time everyyear also. If designed to specification,constructed per design and operatedwith professional skills Rampal Powerplant must not cause adverse impacts toSundarban from operation of the plant.

We can sum up from above that opera-tion of the plant itself will cause very lit-tle or no impacts on the environmentand the Sundarbans. But the plant needsto designed, constructed and operatedfollowing all guidelines, speculationsand standards as conceived and moni-tored intensively at every stage.

These leave us with issues regardingcoal transportation. Till other mode oftransportation by Railway or road can-not be ensured coal would require tobe transported through waterways.We are aware that mother vesselsPanamax most probably will be themost ideal cannot come near Mongla

port or plant Jetty. The coal will requireto be transshipped by several lighter agevessels. Here is our concern. We hopeProject Company will have experiencedprofessionals for managing and moni-toring this transshipment from mothervessel to lighterage vessels . We are notsure whether so many covered lighter-age vessels can be arranged and trans-shipment can be managed inenvironmentally safe manner. The fre-quency of vessel movement, light,sound, fuel spills will definitely causesome impacts on biodiversity of Sundar-bans. Moreover, the Mongla Port Chan-nel will need to have regular dredgingfor ensuring all seasons navigability. Wehave to bear in mind that steaming coalis higher flash point and unlike clinkers,

12July 16, 2016

Panamax Vessel

fertilizers need additionalcare during transporta-tion.

Cape Size Cape Size is the largestvessel used for transport-ing coal and other miner-als. The most commonCape size vessels used fortransporting coal has acapacity over 150,000DWT. They usually serveregions having large deepwater terminals. For thegiant size and higher draftrequirements to anchorand ply they are suitableto serve only a smallnumber of ports.

Cape size ships are com-monly used for transport-ing coal, iron ore andcommodity raw materials. They are bulkcarriers and not tankers. They have cat-egories like very large ore carrier(VLOC) and very large bulk carrier(VLBC). Standard capsize vessel isaround 175,000 DWT

It is pretty obvious that Bangladesh fortransporting coal for Rampal MaitreePower Plant is not going to use CAPE-SIZE vessels for transporting coal.Bangladesh does not have deep waterterminals. CAPESIZE vessels are also notdesigned to transship coal to smallervessels.

PANAMAXPanamax is the mid—sized cargo shipsthat can anchor at deep sea withBangladesh bound coal for Rampalplant and has facilities to transship tosmaller vessels.

These are 10,50 ft(320,04 m) in length ,110 ft ( 33.53 m) in width , and 41.2 ft (12.56m) in depth.

Several covered lighterage vessels willbe required to tranship coal. Hope coalsupply contract will have provision forthat. We must try and restrict movementof vessels through canals of Sundarbanduring day time as much as practicableso that light and sound of the vessels donot scare away birds and other animalswhich usually come out after sun set.

What We Need Now? Whatever a section of civil society ac-tivist think or do Rampal power plant isa relaity now and soon the physicalconstruction of the plant would start.We have no definite information aboutthe source of coal supply or agreementdone for long term coal supply. Giventhe guidelines and standards set for theplant higher heating value lower sulfurand lower ash coal will be the preferredoption. We are not sure whether clientengineer has done the economics as towhat would be the generation costgiven the suprior quality coal require-ment, Ultra super critical technologyand FGD, low SOX and NOX, Dry Ashuse? We can say that the generationcost will not be that much lower as wasanticipated all through.We belive thatall risks management and risks asses-ment has been carried out and contin-gency management plan is ready athand. There must be storage facilitiesbuilt for mnaging coal supply xhain in-terruptions if any. Let us hope that notime will be wasted in delays unncessar-ily at any stage if avoidable. No timewill be wasted in contract negotiationsfor coal supply, shipping and tranship-ping arrangements, equipment deliveryand construction.

Need Extensive Capacity BuildingBHEL has extensive experience of coalfired power plant engineering and con-struction. Client Engineer FISTCHNERand JV Partner NTPC also have requiredexperience. We hope BPDB Engineersand Managers will learn quick refinin-ing their experiences for design, con-struction suervision, operation of thefirst ultra super critical power plant, coalimport termminal management and coalimport contract management.

We hope Plant engineers and operatorswill be provided extensive training forcapacity development across all seg-ments of coal supply value chain. NTPCis the lead partner during enginnering ,construction and commissioing of theplant. There must be BPDB presence atevery level as joint venture partner.DOE mustdo the policing responsibilityfor ensuring and enfocring complianceof environmental safegurads.We find noreasons why Bangladesh and India JointVenture can not successfully operatesuch a modern plant ensuring requiredOHS and HES of international standard.

We wish success of an environmentalfriendly Rampal Coal Fired Power Plant.

Khondkar A Saleque;NRB, Energy Professional

13July 16, 2016

illustration of 1320 Maitree Super Thermal Power Plant

EP

Rampal imported coal fired 1320MW power plant, adopting stateof the art modern technology and

using superior quality coal will not cre-ate any major impact on environment.The project during implementation andlater during operation will create hugejob and business opportunities for thepeople of the region relieving the pop-ulation from exclusive reliance on theresources of the Sundarban which in away will make major positive social im-pacts in the region. Consequently Ram-pal Power plant must not be consideredas an infrastructure going to destroySundarban rather must be seen as aninitiative to conserve it.

The 2X660 MW power plant will adoptfuel efficient ultra-super critical technol-ogy, will have FGD and low NOX sep-arator and will adopt dry ashtechnology. Relatively superior qualityblack coal will be used. All these wouldbring emissions from the plant to nearzero and water pollution would be min-imized through efficient effluent treat-ment. The plant area will have intensiveafforestation toabsorb CO2. Itcan be safelyconcluded thatRampal powerplant will havemarginal envi-ronmental im-pact on theenvironment.Hence therecan be no rea-sons to presumethat it will de-stroy Sundar-ban.

These days sus-tainable powersupply is theprime mover for

the economic development of anycountry. Power is required everywherefrom agriculture to business, industrialproduction, activities of office & court,transportation, housing. The human civ-ilization is primarily dependent on elec-tricity. The per capita energyconsumption and power use is now ameasure of economic development.Bangladesh economy growing at veryimpressive rate of 6% plus over that last8-10 years has created exponentialgrowth of power demand. For sustainingthe pace of development as lower mid-dle income country to coveted middleincome country and developed nationBangladesh requires utilizing all oppor-tunities and options for increasingpower generation.

Bangladesh is one of the most denselypopulated countries in South Asia witha population of over 160 million leavingin a relatively small country. The WorldBank has recognized Bangladesh as alower-middle income country. Since itsindependence the country has success-fully hurdled over and across variousobstacles for reaching the present dy-

namic stage. The government has a vi-sion for achieving the middle-incomecountry status by 2021 and reaches thelevel of developed country by 2041. Tofacilitate that the power sector vision isto achieve generation capacity of 24000MW by 2021 and 60000 MW by 2041.

For reaching this milestone Bangladeshrequires to ensure sustainable supply ofprimary fuel. 62.38% of power genera-tion is now gas-based. The present de-pleting trend of discovered gas resourcecannot support such power generationmix even over the next few years. If thisrate is maintained in fuel mix the deplet-ing trend of discovered gas resourcemay not support the natural gas-basedpower generation over the next fewyears even. Discovery of new resourcewill take some time .Imported LNG maybe too expensive. Government rightlyadopted fuel mix diversification plan.Liquid fuel was chosen as a contingencymeasure for a short term. But the inter-national market price of oil is volatile. Itis reasonably low now but there is noguarantee how long this may sustain.Bangladesh cannot rely on imported liq-uid fuel based power generation for in-definite period. Bangladesh does nothave that much hydropower generationpotential of its own to meet the exten-sive emerging demand. Solar or windcannot be considered in isolation formeeting the entire demand growth. Nu-clear power generation also can only

s u p p l e m e n tbase load gen-erated from tra-ditional fuel.However Coalis the cost —effi-cient option forpower genera-tion forB a n g l a d e s hwhether of itsown or im-ported. Hence,considering thefuture energysecurity of thepower sector,power systemmaster plan hasemphasized on

15

Cover Article

July 16, 2016

‘Rampal Power Plant to HelpConserve Sundarbans’

Anwarul Azim

Approach Road from Khulna-Mongla High Way to Power Plant Photo: BIFPCL

coal basedpower genera-tion. Accordingto PSMP-2010,40000 MW ofelectricity pro-duction targethas been set inthe year 2030.And 50% ofthat, it means20000 MW ofelectricity willbe generatedfrom coal. 1320Maitree SuperThermal PowerPlant in Rampalof Bagerhat dis-trict ofBangladesh is among the several coalfired power generation initiative.

Bangladesh is not the only country pre-ferring coal fired power generation op-tion. Almost all the developed anddeveloping country has adopted coal asthe fuel of choice . United States 40%, Germany 41% , Japan 27% , India68% , South Africa 93% , Australia 78%, Malayasia 33% and China 79% elec-tricity is generated from coal.Bangladesh currently produces only2.05% of electricity from coal. Our car-bon footprint is not even mentionable.To accelerate the economic develop-ment we do not have many other op-tions but to gofor coal-basedpower genera-tion.

Env i ronmen-tally friendly1320 MaitreeSuper ThermalPower Plant islocated14 kmfar away fromthe edge of theSundarbans and69 km far awayfrom UNESCOheritage site.Project man-agement hastaken into ac-tive considera-

tions of the findings of research basedopinions of Economic, Social and Tech-nical & Technological experts. The im-plementation of the project is advancingin accordance with all rules and regula-tions of the Department of Environmentof Bangladesh. This is an environmen-tally friendly power plant in various as-pects.

The site of a large project is selected onsome basic considerations. Especially ina densely populated land constrainedcountry the relocation and rehabilitationof affected community is of paramountimportance. The next consideration isfertility of agricultural land. Then comes

access ib i l i t yand transporta-tion system.Obviously en-v i r o n m e n t a land social im-pacts of a majorinfrastructureproject areamong consid-eration. Maitreepower plant atRampal affectsvery limitednumber of peo-ple. They havebeen duly com-pensated andrelocated .Landbeing used is

not suitable for agriculture. Most of theland is government Khas lands (Publicland) and wet land. Finally, the accessi-bility of imported coal carrying vesselsto plant jetty made Rampal ideal loca-tion.

The adoption of ultra-modern SuperCritical Technology will make it fuel ef-ficient. Flue Gas De-Sulfurization(FGD) system will cater for reduced sul-fur in feed coal. As a result, Sox gasemission will be controlled and espe-cially sulfur dioxide (SO2) will be ab-sorbed almost completely. In the sameway, the modern burner will be de-signed to control the emissions of NOx.

Sox , NOxemissions willbe effectivelycontrolled .The powerplant will useimported coalwith low-ashand low-sulfurcontent. Theproduced ashwill be col-lected in thehopper of Elec-tro Static Pre-cipitator (ESP)and 100% ashwill be used. Asa result, theemission of ash

16July 16, 2016

Inauguration of Computer Training for local youths by Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh HE Harsh

Vardhan Shringla Photo: BIFPCL

Team Leader of UNESCO team Ms Fanny Adolphine M Douvere speaks at the public consultation meeting at

the project site Photo: BIFPCL

from the powerplant will notpollute the envi-ronment.

Coal transporta-tion, storageand use in plantwill be fullycovered. As aresult, there isno possibility ofcontaminationof air or waterduring coaltransportation.Mother vesselswill be an-chored in thedeep sea. Cov-ered Mini Shipswith lighterage process will bring coalto plant jetty/ terminal. There will be nopossibility of out-break/spread-out ofcoal at the time of transportation.Mother vessels will anchor at Hironpoint or Akram point. Environment Im-pact and Social Assessment (EISA) studyhas been completed and the result ispositive.

Tall chimney of the power plant (morethan 900 feet), flue gas will not be at allharmful for nature and the environment.Most of the SOx, NOx will be taken outin any case. The power plant will notuse any underground water. Very littleamount of water (0.05% of the lean pe-riod flow) of Possur river will be used.The use and waste of water will be in-significant. The closed water recyclesystem through the ultra-modern cool-ing tower will be used for reducing tem-perature. So, the same water can bere-used by cooling. A little water will bedischarged in the Possur river and thetemperature of water will be controlled.Waste or untreated hot water will not bedischarged to the Possur river at all.

For the environmental development andabsorption of carbon dioxide emittedfrom Rampal power plant, a green belt(carbon sink) is being built around thepower plant.As part of this initiative,there is a plan of planting two lacs treesaround the plant. Almost 9500 treeshave already been planted. Bangladesh-

India Friendship Power Company (Pvt.)Limited has already signed agreementswith the Department of Forest for af-forestation and its maintenance. Also afull-time environmental monitoring sys-tem has been introduced and will becontinued.

As it turns out, the plant will not haveharmful effects on the forest and thearea at all. Rather the construction of thepower plant will reduce the depend-ence of local communities on the Sun-darban. Local community will havehuge job and business opportunitiesapart from exclusively on cutting woodsfrom forest, fishing and gathering honeyetc. The vested quarter exploiting the in-nocent villagers and fishermen will beforced to abandon their activities. As aresult the expansion of economic activ-ities based on power plant, the depend-ence of local residents on theSundarbans will be gradually dimin-ished, and alternative employment op-portunities will be created. Henceimpacts of Rampal Power plant willrather conserve the Mangrove forest.

Friendship Power project will contributein a major way towards achieving na-tional energy security. Availability oflow-cost and reliable energy supply willcatalyze industrial development in thegreater Khulna and Barishal region. .Itwill be providing reliable and uninter-rupted power supply in the irrigationsystems for ensuring the food security of

the country. Allthese that willcreate hugee m p l o y m e n topportunities,this will alsodevelop infra-structure, willcreate betterpublic health &safety system.The overallquality of lifewill be im-proved. Bettereducation andinstitutional de-velopment andimproved com-munication fa-

cilities will be created.

As part of Corporate Social Responsibil-ities (CSR), the local development activ-ities of BIFPCL will enhance the welfareof the people. For examples, in the proj-ect area of BIFPCL, free treatment is al-ready being given to the local residentsfor almost two years. The governmenthas decided that 3 paisa’s per unit ofelectricity generating from the plant forlife time set for socio-economic devel-opment of the people of the projectarea. A development fund will be gen-erated with the money that will be usedfor the welfare of people in the projectarea. About 30 crores BDT will be de-posited into the fund every year, whichwill be spent on public welfare and pro-tection of forests. So, it is requested toall of them who are engaged in propa-ganda surrounding the Rampal PowerPlant not to spread out any malign andlet’s all work together for the develop-ment of the country, to contribute tobuild a self-dependent developed na-tion.

Anwarul Azim;Manager (Public Relations), Bangladesh-India Friendship PowerCompany (Pvt.) Limited, The author's own opinions mentionedin the article. E-mail: azimhknu@gmail.com

17July 16, 2016

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Free Medical Service for local people as CSR activities of BIFPCL Photo: BIFPCL

Germany is a world leader in re-newable energy deployment.Driven by a long-term renew-

able energy policy that dates backdecades and, more recently, a nuclearpower phase-out, the country is spear-heading a transition to renewables com-monly known as the Energiewende(energy transition).

For many years, the policy instrument ofchoice was a feed-in tariff (FIT). It guar-anteed a fixed payment for (in mostcases) 20 years and priority grid accessfor renewables. The policy providedhigh investment certainty and triggeredtremendous growth in renewable powergeneration capacity.

When the initial law was introduced in1990, the role of renewables in Ger-many’s power mix was negligible. By2015, renewable electricity made up 32per cent of consumption and had grownat speed exceeding all expectations. Thegovernment repeatedly had to upgradeits targets to keep up with renewablesgrowth. But a couple of weeks ago, theGerman government put forward plansto overhaul the Energiewende’s flagshippolicy. The planned reform of the Re-newable Energy Sources Act includes aswitch from feed-in tariffs to auctions.

Sigmar Gabriel, Energy Minister andparty leader of the Social Democrats,hails the reform as a paradigm shift inthe way renewables are funded: “Morecompetition, continuous growth with ef-fective steering, restrictions on costs,stakeholder diversity and dovetailingwith grid expansion - these are the co-ordinates for the next phase of the en-ergy transition.”

With the reform, the government reiter-ates previously set goals to increase theshare of renewable electricity to 40-45per cent in 2025, to 55-60 per cent in2035 and to at least 80 per cent by2050.

But to keep a steady hand on the rise in

renewable power, a “deployment corri-dor” will set limits on how much renew-ables capacity may be added per year.These limits are set per technology: Foronshore wind, a gross amount of 2,800megawatts is to be auctioned each yearover the next three years (2017, 2018and 2019), increasing thereafter.

More competition, continuous growthwith effective steering, restrictions oncosts, stakeholder diversity and dove-tailing with grid expansion - these arethe coordinates for the next phase of theenergy transition.

For solar, 600 megawatts will be auc-tioned each year, and the overall corri-dor of 2,500 megawatts per year willremain (the remainder being built underFITs). For offshore wind, the overall tar-get is 15,000 megawatts by 2030.

For biomass, 150 megawatts are annu-ally up for auction in 2017, 2018 and2019. Small renewables installationslike rooftop solar will continue to re-ceive feed-in tariffs (with smallchanges). The government believes thiswill ensure that citizen cooperatives andproject developers remain active in op-erating small renewables plants.

These limits have been attacked for pro-tecting old coal power plants at the ex-pense of renewables. But thegovernment argues it is making renew-ables deployment more predictable,thereby facilitating grid expansion andimproving planning security for Ger-many’s neighbors and for the energy in-dustry. After all, Chancellor Merkelpromised the Energiewende must notdestroy German utilities. Critics arguethat the government is putting thebrakes on the Energiewende. Greencampaigners see the limits for onshorewind power, the most cost-competitiverenewable technology, as a sign that thegovernment is trying to slow the rapidgrowth of renewables.

In light of past growth rates, the concern

seems justified. Since 2010, Germanyhas increased the share of renewablesin electricity demand by annually 3.1per cent on average. If this growth pathcontinued, the country would reachmore than 60 per cent renewables by2025. With the new proposal, however,the government wants to ensure that re-newables growth does not exceed its2025 target of 40 per cent to 45 percent.

Anna Leidtreiter of the World FutureCouncil expects these changes will fun-damentally threaten Germany`s leader-ship position within energy and climatepolitics, but also lead to significant joblosses and reduce business opportuni-ties for entrepreneurs.

The switch from feed-in tariffs to auc-tions would weaken investment oppor-tunities for small investors, energycooperatives, farmers and enterprises,she says. “Citizens are essentially thebackbone of the energy transition inGermany. Energy cooperatives alonehave invested about 1.3 billion euros(9.5 billion yuan) in RE projects, thusgenerating revenues for communities,regions and citizens,” Leidtreiter argues.

Indeed, the Energiewende has democ-ratized Germany’s power sector in thelast few decades. Due to its inclusivedesign, the policy has enabled newstakeholders to enter the market. Theyhave leveraged significant private in-vestment over the past decade.

More than 800 energy cooperatives aswell as private investors, farmers, banksand enterprises owned almost 90 percent of total installed renewables capac-ity at the end of 2012. In contrast, tradi-tional utilities and energy suppliersinvested very little and thus lost marketshares. Up to now, the Renewable En-ergy Act has been a tremendous successstory. As the International RenewableEnergy Association (IRENA) says, Ger-many has shown the world that such ahigh level of renewables can be inte-grated without systemic problems,

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July 16, 2016

Germany Overhauls Flagship Energy PolicyEP Desk

thanks to strong grid infrastructure andcross-border exchange links.

But the Energiewende as we know it isat a crossroads. So far citizens, commu-nities and new investors have been thebiggest drivers for the energy transition.If the caps and the switch from feed-intariffs to auctions are implemented,large corporations will dominate themarket.

The reform would exclude many poten-tial investors, including citizens, whosebillions of euros would be welcomed tofinance the transformation to a low-car-bon economy. A recent analysis by theClimate Policy Initiative (CPI) concludesthat more than 30 billion euros a yearcould be available for investment in theexpansion of renewable energy capacityin Germany as long as the country shiftspolicy effectively to deal with the nextphase of the energy transition and keepsinvestment open.

These concerns are being discussed inBerlin. For international observers, it isimportant that broad sections of thecountry know that ownership matters inthe energy sector.

The law is expected to be passed beforethe summer recess by the Bundestag(lower house) and the Bundesrat (upperhouse). It will be the government’s finalmajor piece of energy legislation beforethe federal elections in 2017. The En-ergiewende will move forward.

Whether or not the reform puts Ger-many on track to cut greenhouse gasemissions by 40 per cent by 2020 incomparison to 1990 remains to be seen.Either way, slowing down renewablesgrowth to protect old coal plants is notwhat the world expects from a globalclimate leader. Germany’s next govern-ment will have to address the challengeof a coal phase-out and how to expandthe Energiewende to the heat and trans-port sector.

(This story was originally published byChinadialogue under a Creative Com-mons license.)

20July 16, 2016

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Report

The Cabinet recently approved thedraft of the inter-governmental

state credit agreement to be signedbetween Bangladesh and Russia forconstructing the Rooppur NuclearPower Plant.

The approval came from the regularweekly meeting of the Cabinet heldat Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban with PrimeMinister Sheikh Hasina in the chair.

Briefing reporters after the meeting atthe Secretariat, Cabinet SecretaryMohammad Shafiul Alam said theRussian government would provide$11.38 billion as credit out of the$12.65 billion nuke power plant,while the rest of the amount wouldcome as grant and from Bangladeshgovernment fund.

Responding to a question, he saidthe agreement was likely to besigned either in July or August thisyear.

The draft deal includes, details oncredit agreement, interest rate, andthe project duration.

He said the Russian credit bears aninterest rate of LIBOR-plus 1.75%

which would not exceed 4% in in-terest rate. The credit will be repaidin 30 years with a 10-year grace pe-riod, while the loan repayment willstart on March 15, 2027.

The credit repayment will be madetwice a year on March 15 and onSeptember 15 with two equal install-ments with the implementation ofthe credit from 2017-2024.

The Cabinet Secretary said the gov-ernment would have to provide atleast 10% of the overall contractvalue to the Russian contractor asadvance for constructing the two nu-clear plants.

Shafiul Alam said the Russian Bankfor Development and Foreign Eco-nomic Affairs and Sonali Bank Lim-ited would work as authorized bankfor this credit.

He also informed that the minutes ofdiscussion were also signed on May19 this year during the meeting be-tween Science and Technology Min-ister Yeafesh Osman and RussianDeputy Minister for Finance in Rus-sia.

Cabinet Clears Draft Deal on RooppurNuclear Power Plant

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina presides the Cabinet meeting at Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban

EP

An engineer-ing, procure-ment and

construction (EPC)agreement wassigned recently toset up the 2x660MW Maitree SuperThermal PowerProject at RampalUpazila underBagerhat district.

Bangladesh-IndiaFriendship PowerCompany (Pvt) Lim-ited (BIFPCL) signedthe agreement forMain Plant EPC(Turnkey) Package with Bharat HeavyElectricals Limited (BHEL), India, at PanPacific Sonargaon hotel in the city.

General Manager of BHEL Prem PalYadav and Managing Director of BIF-PCL Ujjwal Kanti Bhattacharya signedthe deal on behalf of their respective in-stitutions.

The BIFPCL selected the BHEL throughan international open bidding processas BHEL was found technically qualifiedand financially most competitive.

Construction of the project would con-tribute immensely to the overall devel-opment of the country especially itspower sector. The contract value of theproject is $ 1.49 billion, which will befinanced by Indian Exim Bank.

The plant is expected to come to gener-ation during the financial year 2019-20.

The project was adopted stringent envi-ronmental norms with highly efficientmachineries. The state of art technologyhas been selected for this project tomake it an environment-friendly proj-ect.

Moreover, the BIFPCL has voluntarily

adopted various measures to safeguardthe environment and also to uplift thelivelihoods of local people.

Among others, the contract agreementsigning ceremony was attended by theAdvisor to the Prime Minister ofBangladesh on Power, Energy, and Min-eral Resources, Dr Tawfiq-e-ElahiChowdhury. He addressed the functionas chief guest while State Minister for

Power, Energy and Mineral ResourcesNasrul Hamid joined it as special guest.

Principal Secretary to Prime Minister Of-fice Abul Kalam Azad, Power secretaryMonowar Islam, Power Secretary ofIndia Pradeep Kumar Pujari, High Com-

missioner of India toBangladesh HarshVardhan Shringla,Chairman and Man-aging Director onNTPC Limited, IndiaGurdeep Singh andChairman ofBangladesh PowerDevelopment Board(BPDB) M ShamsulHasan Miah ad-dressed it as guestsof honor.

The BIFPCL is a reg-istered company inBangladesh and pro-moted by BPDB ofBangladesh and

NTPC Limited of India with equal(50:50) equity contribution for develop-ment of power projects in Bangladesh.

Maitree Super Thermal Power Project isthe first such project being developedby BIFPCL and it is one of the Fast TractProjects identified by Bangladesh gov-ernment.

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Report

July 16, 2016

Deal Signed to Build 1320-MWRampal Power Plant

EP Report

General Manager of BHEL Prem Pal Yadav & Managing Director of BIFPCL Ujjwal Kanti Bhattacharya

signed the agreement on behalf of their respective institution

Finance Minister AMA Muhith re-cently said the government will en-

sure uninterrupted gas supply fromearly 2019 and the improved supply

situation willhelp remove themajor obstaclesto rapid indus-trial growth and

economic development.

“Sufficient energy supply is very essen-tial for economic development, energy

has played the key role in sustainingthe steady economic growth overthe last few years,“ the minister said.

Muhith made the remarks while ad-dressing a dialogue titled “Budget ofFulfilling Dreams“, organized byBangladesh Study Trust, a research-based organization, at NationalPress Club in the city.

Steady Gas Supply from Early2019, Says Muhith

AMA Muhith

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Report

July 16, 2016

The government hasstarted importing refined

petroleum products underopen tendering system at'lower' prices cashing in onsliding oil price in the inter-national market, said offi-cials.

State-run Bangladesh Petro-leum Corporation (BPC) al-ready imported 210,000tonnes of diesel and jet fuelcombined through seven car-goes having the capacity of30,000 tonne each in Junefrom Emirates National OilCompany (ENOC) andUnipec Singapore Pte Ltd.

The import price is lowercompared to BPC's oil pur-chase under term deals withsuppliers.

ENOC and Unipec quotedlower premium rates, whichis around 25 per cent lesscompared to the premiumrates under the BPC's termdeals.

ENOC and Unipec Singa-pore had offered the best bidsto supply together 1.50 mil-lion metric tons of refined pe-troleum products to BPC in2016 under its first open ten-der in 15 years.

ENOC would supply660,000 tons of diesel and100,000 tons of jet fuel,while Unipec would provide660,000 mt of diesel and80,000 mt of jet fuel, said aBPC official.

BPC Imports Refined PetroleumProducts at Lower Prices

Bangladesh Petroleum Ex-ploration Company

(Bapex) is set to go for off-shore oil and gas explorationfor the first time ever jointlywith Australian companySantos, beginning with Mag-nama drilling.

The state-run companysigned a deal recently in thisregard with the foreign firmto initiate the hydrocarbonexploration. The work maybegin next February, officialssaid.

Under the 'binding offer

agreement' Bapex will carryout offshore drilling jointlywith Santos at Magnamastructure in the Bay of Ben-gal, Bapex officials said.

Santos will be paidUS$16.50 million as 'sunkcost' for engaging in the jointventure (JV) to explore theoffshore well.

Some exploration activitiesinvolving around $92.30 mil-lion have so far been carriedout at Magnama, locatedunder the block-16 area.

Bapex Poised for Maiden OffshoreGas Exploration

EP

Asenior power official hassaid that there will be no

shortage of electricity whenthe country's generationreaches its target of 24,000MW by 2021.

"For the first time, the elec-tricity generation reached arecord mark with 9,036 MWon June 30, thus fulfilling theconsumer's demand," said anofficial.

He said the government wasnow in a position to reach itsdesired target of generating

24,000 MW by 2021. Thepower generation capacityhas already reached 14,539MW, bringing 76 per cent ofthe population under theelectricity coverage.

"The government has set itstarget to bring all citizensunder the electricity cover-age by 2021 under the vi-sionary leadership of PrimeMinister Sheikh Hasina thatpulled out the nation fromthe abyss of darkness causedby load shedding," he said.

Bangladesh's capa-bility to generatepower has in-creased three-foldto 14,539 MW inseven years of theAwami League'stwo consecutiveterms.

Power Sector on Track to ReachGeneration Target by 2021

EP

Bangladesh Power Devel-opment Board (BPDB)

has incurred losses of nearlyTk 15 billion in the last quar-ter (April-June) of the currentfiscal year 2015-16, worsen-ing the government's subsidyburden on the private powersector, sources said.

BPDP incurredlosses due to ahuge gap be-tween bulkpower tariff andpower genera-tion cost causedmainly by costlypower purchasefrom independ-ent power plants, rental andquick rental plants, theyadded.

It has been providing elec-tricity bills to independentand rental power plants andsupplying fuel oil to its ownpower plants, hampering theelectricity generation activity,a high official of the boardsaid.

The state-run entity has re-

quested the power division toprovide Tk 14.90 billion assubsidy for independentpower plants, rental andquick rental power plantsand import electricity fromIndia.

The power division sent a let-ter to the finance ministry to

take necessarysteps in this re-gard.

Presently, thegovernment pur-chases electricityat higher pricesfrom independentpower plants,rental and quick

rental power plants and im-port electricity from Indiathat has been selling at lowerprices to bulk consumers, theofficial said.

As a result, BPDB incurs asignificant financial lossevery month. The govern-ment provides the board withfinancial assistance againstthe loss, he mentioned.

BPDB Incurs Tk15bn Loss in Q4EP

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Report

July 16, 2016

State-owned is likely tocomplete its negotiations

with South Korean DaewooInternational Corporation forthe exploration of gas in deepsea block No-12 in the Bay ofBengal.

According to sources, bothPetrobangla and Daewoo pri-marily reached an under-standing on most of the issues,including gas pricing. Just afew issues, including a workplan for conducting 2D and3D surveys, remain unsettled.

Petrobangla started negotia-tions with the Korean com-pany last month for offshoregas block No-DS12.

Petrobangla has asked the Ko-rean company to submit a re-

vised plan on timeline for the2D and 3D seismic surveys tobe carried out in the block.

Petrobangla had received un-solicited proposals from threeinternational oil companiesfor three deep sea blocks-DS12, 16 and 21 -- located atdepths ranging from 20-200metres, comprising an area of3200-3600 square kilometersin the Bay of Bengal inBangladesh.

The other two companies,which are also in the processof negotiation for the gas ex-ploration in the bay, are Sin-gapore-based Kris Energy, andNorway's Statoil. They havealso submitted their respectiveproposals, said Petrobanglaofficials

Petrobangla Likely to ConcludeGas Talks With Daewoo

Bangladesh and Japansigned deals on six proj-

ects under 37th Official De-velopment Assistance (ODA)loan package in the city onJune 29.

The projects are: JamunaRailway Bridge ConstructionProject, Cross-Border RoadNetwork Improvement Proj-ect (Bangladesh), DhakaMass Rapid Transit Develop-ment Project (II), MatarbariUltra Super Critical Coal-Fired Power Project II, EnergyEfficiency and ConservationPromotion Financing Project

and Disaster Risk Manage-ment Enhancement Project.

Additional Secretary of Eco-nomic Relations Division(ERD) Kazi Shafiqul Azamand Japanese Envoy toBangladesh Masato Watan-abe signed the exchange ofnotes on behalf of respectivesides while ERD AdditionalSecretary Kazi Shafiqul Azamand Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA)Chief Representative MikioHataeda initialed the loanagreement in Dhaka.

Dhaka, Tokyo to Ink Deals onSix Major Projects Soon

Dhaka Chamber of Com-merce and Industry

(DCCI) has said the country’sRMG and other import substi-tute export-led industries maylose global market share andposition due to enhanced pro-duction cost if gas price ishiked.

“Any gas price hike may affectbusiness growth,” said thetrade body in a statement ex-pressing their concerns.

When the country is experi-encing gas supply stagnation,the proposed maximum 140per cent tariff rise will ad-versely affect the growth of ex-port lifeline textile and RMG,leather, shipbuilding, powergeneration, growing SME sec-tor as well as other gas-inten-sive manufacturing industriesand businesses losing bothlocal and export market com-petitiveness, the DCCI ob-

served.

In the given circumstances,the trade body expressed deepconcern on behalf of ‘cross-sectional business and indus-try community’ andadvocated for enormous ef-forts for remarkable improve-ment of gas supply to meetescalating demand and alter-native primary energy sourcesfor energy security.

DCCI also urged the govern-ment to formulate minimumof a three-year-long consistentgas tariff and distribution planin line with exploration anddistribution policy aiming tocater to the cumulative, incre-mental sectoral interests, in-vestment opportunities andpropel economic growth tra-jectory avoiding commotionin the years to come acrossthe country.

Gas Price Hike May AffectBusiness Growth: DCCI

The 11th Joint SteeringCommittee (JSC) meeting

on power sector cooperationbetween Bangladesh andIndia will discuss fresh500MW of electricity importfrom Indian open market andother three issues, accordingto the sources in Power Divi-sion.

It would take two and halfyears to import fresh 500MW

power from India, accordingto an official but Bangladeshis considering the issue onemergency basis as no megapower project would be ma-terialized by that time.

If the deal could be struck itwould add huge power intothe national grid when thedemand of electricity isgrowing by 35 per cent inurban areas and 10-12 per

cent in rural areas perannum.

According to the sourcesDelhi is interested to dis-cuss the progress ofRampal power projectas it has taken a snailpace in the meantime.

"This amount will be im-ported from Indian openmarket under SpecialPower and Energy En-hancement Act-2015 tomeet its growing de-mand," the officialadded.

Dhaka Keen to Import 500MWMore Power from India

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Report

July 16, 2016

The government would in-stall a 240-km pipeline

from Chittagong to Dhakawithin three years for thesupply of petroleum fuel at acheap rate, State Minister forPower Nasrul Hamid toldparliament recently.

Replying to lawmakers'queries, he expressed hishope that the project wouldbe implemented within thetime following a detailed fea-sibility study and other re-quired processes.

Earlier in 2015, the then en-ergy and mineral resources

secretary Abubakar Siddiquehad said the project -- costingTk 1,200 crore -- would endby 2017.

"We have taken the project tosave Tk 130 crore annuallyand ensure fuel security," hesaid.

Imported fuel and crude oilwould be supplied directly tothe capital through thepipeline, sources said,adding that Bangladesh Pe-troleum Corporation wouldimplement the project.

Dhaka-Ctg Oil Pipeline in 3 Years

Bangladesh has becomeone of the first countries

to have secured a loan fromthe Asian Infrastructure In-vestment Bank (AIIB).

The country will get $165million from the China-leddevelopment bank for apower distribution systemupgrade and expansion proj-ect.

The board of the bank re-cently approved its first fourloans totaling $509 million to

finance four projects in fourcountries. The other coun-tries are Indonesia, Pakistanand Tajikistan, said the AIIBin a statement.

The Bangladesh project willcompletely be financed bythe AIIB, said an official.

He said the loan would havean interest rate of LIBOR plus1.15 percent and a repay-ment period of 25 years withfive years in grace period.

AIIB Credit for Power DistributionSystem Upgrade

The U.S. energy secretarysaid recently he sees the

global oil market coming intobalance over the next year asrising demand catches upwith a two-year-old supplyglut that depressed prices.

Ernest Moniz said suppliesshould be adequate after themarket comes into balance.He said Saudi Arabia hasmade clear it will maintainspare production capacity ifit is needed by the market.

Moniz spoke after meetingwith his Saudi counterpart,Khalid al-Falih, while bothwere in Beijing for a gather-ing of energy ministers fromthe Group of 20 major devel-oped and emergingeconomies.

The Saudi minister told theHouston Chronicle on June22 the oversupply of oil wasending and he expected mar-kets to come into balancethis year.

US Energy Secretary Sees OilMarket Coming Into Balance

EP

Ajoint venture (JV) be-tween Punj Lloyd and

Limak has been awarded acontract to construct a 459km section of the 48 inch di-ameter TANAP Gas Pipelinein Turkey.

The 1,841km TransAna to l ianNatural GasP i p e l i n eP r o j e c t(TANAP) isdesigned to transport naturalgas produced in the ShahDeniz 2 field and other fieldsin Azerbaijan and its neigh-bours, through to Turkey andEurope.

Punj Lloyd and Limak’s

US$409 million contract isfor the second phase of con-struction (Spread 4), from thenew Eskisehir CompressorStation to the tie-in point ofthe Trans-Adriatic Pipeline

(TAP).

The terrainranges fromlowland tohigh rockym o u n t a i nranges withs t e e p

slopes, deep forest, agricul-tural fields, numerous riverand road/track crossings, en-vironmental sensitive and ar-chaeological areas. Theelevations are up to 1,394 mfor this pipeline spread.

Punj Lloyd-Limak JV Wins TANAPPipeline Contract

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The Emirates Nuclear En-ergy Corporation (ENEC)

achieved a major milestonein the testing and commis-sioning phase of the BarakahNuclear Energy Plant withthe completion of the Struc-tural Integrity Test (SIT) andIntegrated Leak Rate Test(ILRT) for Unit One at theBarakah Nuclear EnergyPlant in Abu Dhabi.

It was performed over a pe-

riod of several weeks, onUnit One at Barakah, withthe Federal Authority for Nu-clear Regulation (FANR) pro-viding full oversight, andconforming to the highest in-ternational standards ofsafety and quality, said thestatement from Enec.

Both of these tests demon-strate the integrity and ro-bustness of the structure interms of force and leak tight-

Emirates Nuclear Energy AchievesKey Milestone

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ness, and the structure’s abil-ity to perform safely undernormal and extraordinary cir-cumstances.

The SIT evaluates thestrength of the Reactor Con-tainment Building (RCB), thestructure at the heart of theplant, which houses the reac-

tor and major components,by pressurizing and depres-surizing the building to sim-ulate regular andextraordinary conditions,while the ILRT assesses theleak-tightness of the contain-ment building under a varietyof conditions.

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July 16, 2016

MAN Diesel & Turbo todeliver gas turbine

packages for industrial powerand heat generation from2017, two MAN turbinesbased on CHP will deliveraround 17 MW of power and35 MW of heat to an indus-trial park in the provincialcapital of Changsha.

The order placed by Chang-sha ENN Heating Power Co.Ltd, the energy provider forthis large Chinese city, com-prises the company's provenTHM series as well as anMGT 6100 gas turbine — thenewest type available fromMAN.

The repeat success on theChinese market is thanks inno small part to the coopera-tion with the Chinese partnercompany Shanghai Aero-space Energy Co. Ltd, whotakes on the EPC (engineer-ing, procurement, construc-

tion) responsibility for thisproject.

Konstantin Divivier, Head ofSales for Gas Turbines atMAN Diesel & Turbo: "Thesehighly efficient turbines areoptimized for combined heatand power applications andare ideal for decentralizedgeneration with minimumemissions. The recent proj-ects in China show that thesebenefits are being recognizedby the market."

Equipped with Dry LowEmission technology andusing natural gas as a lowemission fuel, MAN turbinetechnology will replace anexisting coal-based plant inChangsha. This also helpssupport the objectives of theChinese central government,which is pursuing a consider-able reduction in pollutantemissions across the country.

Gas Turbines from MANStrengthen Foothold in China

From border disputes in theSouth China Sea to the on-

going conflicts and refugeecrisis in Syria the world is anincreasingly unstable place.Global crises like terrorismand pandemics will be am-plified by climate change,undermining the UN’s abilityto preserve peace and secu-rity.

Recently, former UNFCCCchief Christiana Figueres hasjoined the race to becomethe new UN Secretary Gen-eral. Whoever becomes thenew UNSG, they must radi-cally reform the UN to makeit fit for purpose in a climatechanged world or see its coremission undermined, accord-ing to a report, United WeStand, released recently byclimate change think tank,E3G.

CEO Nick Mabey says: “Weneed the UN more than ever- it is an important constantthat transcends social andpolitical unrest - but we needit to be fit for purpose. Thenew Secretary General mustfollow through on the majorinternational agreementsstruck last year and climateproof the UN system.”

The future UNSG is under in-creasing pressure from coun-tries to reform the UNsystems, most recently duringthe World HumanitarianSummit in Istanbul in Maywhich sought to improve sys-tems around humanitarianaid and crisis response.

The new UNSG will need tomake sure the UN can imple-ment the three major agree-ments struck last year - theParis Agreement on ClimateChange, the Agenda 2030Sustainable DevelopmentGoals which seek to eradi-cate poverty, and the SendaiFramework for Disaster RiskReduction.

New Secretary General MustMake UN Fit for Climate

Changed World

Fatih Birol, executive di-rector of the International

Energy Agency, said electric-ity markets around the worldhave been affected by histor-ically low coal prices and agrowing supply of naturalgas.

"Current energy markets do

not send strong enough sig-nals to invest in low-carbontechnologies, including nu-clear power," he said.

That is a challenge becausethe global fleet of nuclear re-actors is aging, Birol said.About 60% of the existingnuclear reactors are between

IEA Head Says Electricity MarketsNot Providing Needed Signals

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30 and 40 years old, mean-ing they will have to be re-placed in the comingdecades, he said.

Reactor retirements willgrow in the US and Europein coming years, althoughthey will be offset by addi-tional nuclear capacity inChina, the fastest-growingnuclear energy operator,

Birol said.

In 2015, global nuclear ca-pacity increased by 10.2GW, the largest amount in25 years, Birol said.

Most of that increase wasfrom reactor construction inChina, South Korea and Rus-sia, he said.

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Christiana Figueres

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July 16, 2016

Fr e n c heconomy

and trademinister Em-m a n u e lMacron saidrecently hiscountry willcontinue toinvest in nu-clear energy,i n c l u d i n gp r o v i d i n gsupport forutility EDF'splan to builda nuclear plant in the UK, de-spite delays on existing proj-ects and a reorganization ofthe French state-controlledindustry.

Macron, speaking at theWorld Nuclear Exhibition inParis, acknowledged that theFrench effort in the 1990s tocombine its reactor designbusinesses and fuel cyclebusinesses into a single state-

c o n t r o l l e dc o m p a n y ,Areva, wasultimately afailure.

The companyis being bro-ken up, withAreva's reac-tor businessbeing sold toEDF and a"new" Arevabeing formedto hold thec o m p a n y 's

mining, enrichment andother fuel cycle businesses.

The government will investEur5 billion ($5 billion) inAreva, he said, and is seekingminority partners who wouldinvest in both Areva and EDF.The state plans to invest inEDF as well, officials havesaid.

France Nuclear Energy InvestmentsContinuing: Economy Minister

Chevron Corp. affiliateTengizchevroil (TCO)

will proceed with develop-ment of its Future Growthand Wellhead Pressure Man-agement Project (FGP-WPMP) to increase crude oilproduction at Kazakhstan’sTengiz oil field by 260,000b/d.

FGP-WPMP is estimated tocost $36.8 billion. It will raiseTCO’s total production toabout 1 million boe/d.

Chevron owns 50% of TCO,which operates Tengiz field.TCO joint venture partnersare ExxonMobil Corp. 25%,KazMunayGas 20%, andLukArco 5%.

John Watson, Chevron chair-man and chief executive offi-cer, said FGP-WPMP “buildson a record of strong per-formance at Tengiz and willadd value for Chevron.”

Tengiz is a deep, supergiantoil field. The top of the reser-voir is about 12,000 ft belowthe surface. TOC also is de-veloping nearby Korolevfield.

Chevron’s 2015 net sharefrom Tengiz and Korolevfields averaged 257,000 b/dof oil, 348 MMcfd of naturalgas, and 21,000 bbl of natu-ral gas liquids.

Chevron, Partners Finalize $37bnInvestment for Tengiz Oil Field

Quietly but surely, severalcountries in South-east

Asia are tiptoeing closer tonuclear energy as they lookto bolster power productionto meet rising demand fromfast-growing economies. Sin-gapore, meanwhile, is work-ing to sharpen its expertise innuclear safety-related mat-ters.

In the past few months, coun-tries such as Cambodia, Laosand Indonesia have signed araft of agreements with Rus-sia relating to nuclear energy.At the Russia-ASEAN Summitlast month, Cambodia signedseveral memorandums of un-derstanding (MOUs) to createa nuclear energy informationcenter and a joint workinggroup for the development ofnuclear energy in the coun-try.

Cambodia has discussed thepossibility of benefiting from

nuclear energy in the longterm, said deputy environ-ment minister Tin Ponlok at anuclear industry conferencein Moscow in end-May.

"The signing of the MOUs ispart of our effort to becomean upper-middle-incomecountry by 2030," he said."We need to move towards(a) knowledge-based econ-omy by promoting researchand development."

In April, Laos agreed to co-operate with Russia on thedesign, construction and op-eration of nuclear powerplants and research reactors.

Local media reported lastyear that there are plans tobuild two nuclear power re-actors in the country, with acapacity of 1,000-1,200megawatts each.

S'pore Builds Safety Savvy as S-EAsia Inches Towards Nuclear Energy

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Asian prices for liquefiednatural gas (LNG) rose to

their highest since Februaryon rising Asian imports and agas leak at Australia’s Gorgonexport site, as well as higherprices in Britain.

Asian spot LNG prices LNG-AS were valued around$5.50 per million British ther-mal units (mmBtu) by traders,about one-third higher thantheir 2016 lows from April.

Traders said that prices weresupported by strong demandand also by Chevron’s hugebut troubled Gorgon LNGplant in Australia, with the

latest technical incident a gasleak reported on Friday, al-though Chevron said the fa-cility “remains on track toload the second cargo ofGorgon LNG in the comingdays.”

Prices were also supportedby firm Asian demand.Driven by upticks in Japan-ese, Taiwanese and also Chi-nese imports, LNG shipmentsinto North Asia have risenfrom weekly levels of around3 billion cubic metres (bcm)to 4 bcm between mid-Mayand mid-June, according toEikon data.

Stronger North Asian Demand,Gorgon Gas Leak Lift Asian LNG Prices

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Emmanuel Macron

29July 16, 2016

Infrastructure Development CompanyLtd recently signed a financing agree-

ment for a project of Power Divisioncalled development of sustainable re-newable energy power generationaimed at low-income households.

Mahmood Malik, CEO of IDCOL andMd Anwarul Islam Sikder Chairman ofSREDA executed the agreement on be-half of their respective organizations.

The objective of this project is to ensureaccess to electricity for low incomehouseholds by supplying plug and playsolar systems for those who do not havethe capacity to buy solar home system.

Under the contract the SREPGen projectwill provide $2 million as grant toIDCOL. The project is implemented and

supported by United Nations Develop-ment Program, Bangladesh.

The buy down grant will help low-in-come households afford the system atan economical price. The project targetsinstalling around 100,000 Plug and Playsystems.

The program will follow the samemodality of the existing solar home pro-gram of IDCOL under which 4 millionsolar home systems have been installedin areas of Bangladesh that are off thegrid.

The program claims to be the world’slargest off the grid solar home systemprogram. Around 12% of the total pop-ulation of Bangladesh is getting cleanenergy from this initiative.

100,000 Low-Income Familiesto Get Solar Energy

Solar Pump CreatesNew Dimension inAgriculture

Newly commissioned solar energy-based irrigation pumps have

opened up a new door in agriculturesector as farmers can boost their farmingyields through the irrigation facilitiesround the year in Barind area.

In addition to benefiting the farmerseconomically, the pumps will con-tribute to reduce the gradually increas-ing pressure on power supply.

Barind Multipurpose Development Au-thority (BMDA) has set up two low liftpumps adjacent to Sarmangla canal atJagpur and Birail areas and another twopumps near ponds in Gopalpur andPaldevpur areas under Godagari Up-azila by spending around Taka onecrore.

After lifting water from the canal andponds the pumps will irrigate farmingfields. The solar system pumps have ca-pacity to provide irrigation to more than2,000 bighas of cropping fields roundthe year.

Around 10 solar panels will be installedto operate the pumps for irrigationunder a three-year project titled "Exten-sion of Irrigation in Barind Area throughConservation of Water in Canal" beingimplemented in eight upazilas of Ra-jshahi, Naogaon and Chapainawabgonjdistricts.

Project Director Engineer ShamsulHuda said that the project has beenadopted to enhance crop productionthrough using the solar irrigation pumpin the dried area.

Each of the 24-piece solar modules con-tains integrated energy of 720 volt hav-

Mahmood Malik, CEO of IDCOL and Md Anwarul Islam Sikder Chairman of SREDA executes the

agreement on behalf of their respective organizations Photo: SREDA

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ing five horse powers along with waterdischarging power of 300 liter per hour.

Lifespan of the system has been set to20 years.

31July 16, 2016

Industries Minister Amir Hossain Amuhas urged the word leaders for extend-

ing their coordinated efforts to help de-velop green industries for sustainabledevelopment.

"Two thirds of the world's populationwill live in the urban areas by 2050", theminister said, noting that an effectiveinitiatives for transferring green technol-ogy is urgent for meeting the need for

green industries of the large number ofurban population.

The minister was speaking at the paneldiscussion on "Green Industry for Sus-tainable Cities" at the fourth Green In-dustry Conference (GIC) in Ulsan,Korea, said a release received recently.

Referring to the government's plan formaking Bangladesh an industrially de-

veloped country by 2021, Amu saidBangladesh had already taken variousinitiatives for developing green indus-tries.

He listed renewable energy projects,cleaner production system and greencell in the country's industry sector asthe major steps toward green indus-tries.

The minister said, "If we want a sus-tainable and economically viable fu-ture, we need to ensure our industrydoes not harm the environment."

The three-day conference was organ-ized by the Ulsan Metropolitan City,the Ministry of Trade, Industry and En-ergy, and UNIDO, with the support ofthe Ministry of Foreign Affairs of theRepublic of Korea.

Amu for Global Efforts to Help DevelopGreen Industry

Lack of proper policy support in fixingtariff is hindering the move taken by

two power distribution entities in Dhakacity to install rooftop solar power plantson public and private buildings, officialsources said.

The move, they said, also suffers for lackof cooperation from government authori-ties in using the rooftops of their build-ings.

According to them, Dhaka Electric Sup-ply Company Ltd (Desco) and DhakaPower Distribution Company Ltd (DPDC)have initiated the move to install rooftopsolar power plants on government andprivate buildings.

Desco has initially decided to set up fourrooftop plants at Haji Camp in Uttara,Mirpur indoor stadium, National Instituteof Eye Science & Hospital in Shre-E-Bangla Nagar and Bangladesh InstituteBank Management (BIBM) in Mirpur.

On the other hand, the DPDC hasplanned to set up rooftop plants at Mat-saya Bhaban at Ramna and Shikkha Bha-ban at Abdul Gani Road. It has alreadyinstalled rooftop plants at BangladeshSecretariat’s Cabinet Division building ona pilot basis.

But all these plants will be set up on com-mercial basis as part of a government’snational plan on renewable energy, saidthe officials.

The government has already finalized anational plan to generate 3,168 MWpower from renewable energy sources by2021. Of this, officials believe, about1000 MW electricity can easily comefrom the rooftops of buildings in Dhakacity.

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The financier of the proposed SylhetPower Efficiency Enhancement Proj-

ect - Islamic Development Bank (IDB) -has raised question over its evaluationprocess and sought clarification overbidder selection, said officials.

It wrote several letters to the state-runBangladesh Power Development Board(BPDB), implementing authority of theproject, explaining its reservation overthe evaluation process, they also said.

The project aims at converting Sylhet150 megawatts (MW) gas turbine powerplant to a 225 MW combined cyclepower plant.

The Jeddah-based multilateral donor

agency has al-ready agreed toprovide US$ 85

million out of the total cost of $87.50million to implement the project. Theremaining cost would be shouldered bythe government, said a project official.

BPDB has already evaluated the finalbids, submitted by three responsive bid-ders. It has recommended awarding theproject work to Shanghai Electric GroupCo, citing it as the lowest bidder, said asenior BPDB official concerned.

It subsequently wrote letter to IDB, seek-ing concurrence on its recommendationto finally select the Chinese firm and inkproject contracts.

Sylhet Power Efficiency Project

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32July 16, 2016

Th eU N

S e c r e -t a r y -Generalhas re-l e a s e dthe firsta n n u a lr e p o r to nprogresstowardsthe Sus-tainableD e v e l -opment Goals (SDGs), which providesa global overview of the current situa-tion regarding the SDGs on the basis ofthe latest available data for indicators inthe proposed global framework.

The report also highlights the theme ofthe 2016 session of the high-level po-litical forum on sustainable develop-ment (HLPF), convened under theauspices of the UN Economic and So-cial Council (ECOSOC), 'Ensuring thatno one is left behind,' through exam-ples of disaggregated data that pinpointwhere specific population groups arelagging behind.

It further provides information on themethodologies used for the compilationof global indicators and an overview ofdata availability and statistical chal-lenges.

Prepared by the Statistics Division ofthe UN Department of Economic andSocial Affairs (DESA), the report notes,inter alia, that one in eight people stilllive in extreme poverty, nearly 800 mil-lion people suffer from hunger.

Secretary-GeneralPresents Report onProgress TowardsSDGs

The World Bank said recently that itwould lend India more than $1 bil-

lion for its huge solar energy program,after Prime Minister Narendra Modisought climate change funds from itsvisiting head.

Modi is banking on India's 300 days ayear of sunshine to generate power andhelp fight climate change rather thancommitting to emission cuts like China.

The World Bank loan is the globallender's biggest solar aid for any countryand comes as India has set a goal of rais-ing its solar capacity nearly 30 times to100 gigawatts by 2020 and is attractingmega investment proposals from topcompanies and institutions.

"Prime Minister Modi's personal com-mitment toward renewable energy, par-ticularly solar, is the driving forcebehind these investments," World BankPresident Jim Yong Kim said in a state-ment released after he met Modi.

"The World Bank Group will do all itcan to help India meet its ambitious tar-gets, especially around scaling up solarenergy."

India is the largest client of the WorldBank, which lent it around $4.8 billionbetween 2015 and 2016.

Modi's office said he told Kim about theneed for climate change financing forcountries like India that are "consciouslychoosing to follow an environmentallysustainable path".

India wants the share of non-fossil fuelin total installed power capacity to jumpto 40 percent by 2030 from 30 percentcurrently, but there are challenges in-cluding weak finances of state distribu-tion companies forced to sell subsidisedpower, difficulties hooking up solarprojects to grids, and access to afford-able capital.

Still India reckons its renewable energyindustry could generate business oppor-tunities worth $160 billion this decade,making it a lucrative market that has al-ready attracted big global players suchas Japan's Softbank Corp, Taiwan's Fox-conn, First Solar, Trina Solar Ltd and Fin-land's state-controlled utility FortumOyj.

German development bank KFW has al-ready agreed to offer India low-interestloans of around 1 billion euro over thenext five years to fund roof-mountedsolar panels, and the construction ofsolar energy farms and self-containedsolar power facilities not connected tothe grid.

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The President, World Bank, Dr. Jim Yong Kim meets on the Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, in

New Delhi during his recent visit Photo: PIB, IN

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Ban Ki-moon

Power shortage has remained aperennial problem in Bangladeshfor decades, and is still continuing;

and may well remain so for possiblydecades more. There appears to be littleor no scope for any relief from it. Basi-cally the reason behind; is the govern-ment's lack of real determination andwill, to find sources of more fuel fromfree local (non-conventional) sources;that is awaiting exploitation. Importantlywe are not going for options that canutilize other local sources of this non-traditional fuel source. It can be cheaplyexploited and introduced as a ratherlimitless fuel source. The little coal thatwe extract is like a drop in the ocean;nothing worth writing about in the over-all national context.

Unfortunately, our natural gas; has beentaken for granted since many years now.Unfortunately, by and large, it has beenmisused over decades and in a sensewasted away. Not long back, gas burn-ers, gas stoves and ovens were kept per-petually running in most kitchens, bothin houses and also restaurant kitchens.As gas tariff was based on the numberof burners andovens used; andnot on the quan-tity of gas beingconsumed. In re-ality, throughoutthe day; exceptmay be wheneveryone went tosleep at night andthere was the fearof accidental fire;with everyonesleeping. It wasonly at night time;were gas cookersand ovens wereshut down. Thiswriter feels thatour authorities

possibly never thought about the finitevolumes of gas we have below our sur-face; and lived on with this practice formany years; and took no positive step tostop this criminal wastage of our naturalgas; the most valued national asset.

Now the bitter reality has come hometo roost; and 'gas scarcity' is the bitterand factual truth today after ages offreely burning and wasting natural gas(methane). Today, the shortage of elec-tric power because of this wastage is afact. Now electric power rationing hasbecome the factual factual reality.Should we therefore not urgently go forexploring other easily available avenuesof non-traditional sources of fuel forpower generation; that is not dependenton the availability of coal, oil andmethane, which is limited by our geo-logical sources?

Firstly, we should go all-out far maxi-mizing utilization of solar power; freelyavailable as long as the solar system ex-ists. This should not be restricted tohousehold solar panels only. We shouldgo ahead and set up as many solar mini

power plants; say 50 to 100 MW each;if needed on public-private partnershipbasis, particularly in rural and othersmall urban towns. This non-conven-tional sources of fuel needs to be ex-ploited and brought to use quickly, andwith minimum red-tape and hassle. Formaximizing solar power, we should goall out for having overhead voltaic pan-els; wherever possible on shallow fore-shore river bank areas; normally undershallow water and flooded during hightides. This could be be an ideal locationfor installing solar panels on poles, andcables being also led out on poles over-head to the nearest villages and otherareas. Back up power if needed can beset up, using oil as fuel, through smallstandby power units on land or fore-shore battery banks.

Another viable option is to go for dualfuel (oil-garbage) combination; that canuse sorted municipal solid garbage,along with fuel oil, firing the steamboiler, in various small towns and citiesof Bangladesh. In France near suburbsof Paris; there is such a dual-fuel(coal/garbage) based power plant; that

has been runningfor many years.There the collec-tion and sorting ofgarbage needsmore manualinput; hence thegarbage as fuel isnot cost effective.This is not the canease here, as un-skilled manuallabor is cheap,more so in ruralareas. Further, itwill use the man-power now uti-lized form u n i c i p a lgarbage collec-

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July 16, 2016

Ways for Permanently Reducing Electric PowerShortage in Bangladesh

Engr. S.A. Mansoor

tion and disposal, in towns and cities.This will also positively reduce the pos-sibility of spread of diseases, due tolikely presence of germs in householdgarbage; as these will all be burnt.

This is a cost effective option, if we con-sider the tying up of scarce urban landfor garbage dumping, and the relateddangers of spreading of diseases. Mu-nicipalities and Union Council authori-ties must be encouraged and whereneeded given easy term loans to goahead for setting up this type of fuel-freeunits for small scale local power gener-ation. Power can also be tapped fromnatural gas pressure reducing station atnatural gas well head; by having an ex-pansion turbine, instead of the conven-tional manual, air or electricallyoperated large pressure reducing valveat gas well-heads. The power so pro-duced may be small, but it can supplythe power needs of the wellhead facili-ties and its adjacent nearby localities.All gas companies should, be mandatedto set up such fuel free power generat-ing units.

An important measure, that is not beingpracticed in Bangladesh, particularly byindustries; is using capacitors to im-prove the power factor of the plantdrives; particularly the electricallydriven equipment, running on AC com-mercial or in-house power supply.There is very little awareness about this.This writer did this in a factory, with adrive load of around 800 to 900 KW;running on three shifts. The financialsavings monthly was over 15 percentcompared to earlier electric charges.

This inspired the owners; and they didthis in all their other eight factoriesowned by them.

Last, but not the least is the perpetualand guaranteed unfailing source of fuel,coming as methane gas from the naturaldecomposition of human solid toilet (la-trine) wastes. This potentially valuablefuel source must be utilized nationally.In reality, for Dhaka and few other bigcities of Bangladesh; these sanitarywastes are dumped as earth fill, or evenpumped out to nearby rivers, after mix-ing with water (Dhaka is an example).This leads to a potentially dangerous

source of germs and diseases being re-leased in the rivers that even today hasremained totally ignored by our author-ities; and is not known to most people.This solid human waste is a valuablepotential source of methane gas; that wecan definitely have. This will save andreduce our costs for the import of coaland liquid fuel; as well as conserve ouroverall reserve of natural gas that is log-ically getting lower day by day.

Thailand, which has practically no localgeological fuel resources, has been pro-ducing methane gas from solid humantoilet waste, for the past twenty years ormore. They also use the leftover solidresidue, after methane is extracted. Thisodorless solid left over mass is mixedwith wood dust from timber sawing andfurniture making. It is mixed togetherwith used lubricating oil and grease andpressed into solid fuel cakes. These aresold in the market as solid fuel, in placeof coal; in almost all small shops; allover the country. It is a popular fuelbeing used in mostly their rural areas, aswell as some urban areas, where

methane gas is not now piped.

All has been said; but sadly, nothing isbeing done or possibly will be done; toexploit and use this potential and inex-haustible free source of producingmethane gas, that has remained unused!In sad contrast; money is regularly beingspent by WASA for pumping it all outinto our rivers and water bodies; as apotential source of diseases and infec-tions; which adds to our national finan-cial load, as costs for ultimate publichealthcare. The sad reality is that, in thename of municipal disposal of solidhuman waste; at least in Dhaka, if notin other cities, we are spreading germs;with no one bothering about it.

Engr. S.A. Mansoor;Now retired; having over half acentury of hands-on experience inmany industrial factories; both inpublic and private sectors thatgenerate their own power; and keepPDB power as stand-by for emergencyneeds only

36July 16, 2016

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Massive tree plantation has be-come a need for the time to mit-

igate adverse impacts of climatechange and for the ecology and bio-diversity in order to build a saferplanet.

The opinion came at a concludingceremony of a fortnight-long ‘Divi-sional Wood, Fruit and Medicinal TreeFair -2016’ organized by the districtadministration, Social Forestry Divi-sion and Department of AgricultureExtension (DAE) in Rangpur recently.

Officials and experts of the adminis-tration, DAE, Department of Forest(DoF), agriculture-related organiza-tions, NGOs, nursery owners, studentsand farmers attended the ceremonyheld on Zila School ground in the city.

The concluding ceremony of the fair

was arranged in advance ahead of itsschedule considering the 9-day publicholidays commencing from July 1.

Fifty stalls have been set up in the fairby private sector nursery owners andentrepreneurs displaying saplings ofmany varieties of fruit, timber and me-dicinal plants.

Additional Divisional Commissioner(General) attended the concludingceremony and distributed prizes asthe chief guest. With Divisional ForestOfficer Shafikul Islam in the chair,Deputy Commissioner Rahat Anwar,Deputy Director of the DAE SM AshrafAli, Assistant Forest Conservator DrPrantosh Chandra and President ofCity Nursery Owners’ Association Sai-ful Islam addressed as special guests.

Stress on Tree Plantation to MitigateClimate Change Impact

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Integrated Gasifi-cation CombinedCycle IGCC is a

combination of twoleading technolo-gies. The first tech-nology is called coalgasification, whichuses coal to create aclean-burning gas(syngas). The sec-ond technology iscalled combined-cycle, which is themost efficientmethod of produc-ing electricity com-mercially availabletoday.

Coal GasificationThe gasification por-tion of the IGCCplant produces aclean coal gas (syn-gas) which fuels thecombustion turbine.Coal is combinedwith oxygen in thegasifier to producethe gaseous fuel,mainly hydrogen and carbon monox-ide. The gas is then cleaned by a gascleanup process. After cleaning, thecoal gas is used in the combustion tur-bine to produce electricity.

Combined-cycleThis design consists of a combustion tur-bine/generator, a heat recovery steamgenerator, and a steam turbine/genera-tor. The exhaust heat from the combus-tion turbine is recovered in the heatrecovery steam generator to producesteam. This steam then passes through asteam turbine to power another genera-tor, which produces more electricity.Combined cycle is more efficient thanconventional power generating systemsbecause it re-uses waste heat to producemore electricity. The integration of these

technologies provides the high effi-ciency of the combined-cycle designwith the low cost of coal for fuel.

Integrated Gasification Combined CycleIGCC is an advanced technology thatrepresents the cleanest of currentlyavailable coal technologies. Advantagesof IGCC over current conventional coal-based power generation systems in-clude: Higher efficiencies and loweremissions.

For environmental protection fromharmful compounds produced duringpower generation, pulverized coal (PC)and natural gas plants typically cleanexhaust after combustion–after the ex-haust has mixed with air and the con-trolled compounds are diluted. Ingeneral, the less concentrated the un-

wanted compounds,the more difficultthey are to remove.In IGCC operation,however, syngasfrom the gasifier iscleaned before thegas turbines, when itis at high pressureand more concen-trated. Particulatecontrol is particu-larly stringent be-cause of operationalrequirements for thegas turbine. This al-lows for cleaner op-eration than powergeneration by cur-rent PC combustiontechnology (andmuch cleaner opera-tion than legacy coalplants).

Gasification has thepotential for highlyefficient power gen-eration. While aconventional sub-critical pulverized

coal (PC) power plant has a typical plantefficiency of about 35% an integratedgasification combined cycle (IGCC)power plant can have a plant efficiencyof greater than 43% depending on thegasification and heat recovery technolo-gies employed and the degree of plantintegration with other processes, like airseparation, for example. When coupledwith other advanced technologies underdevelopment, like hydrogen turbinesand solid oxide fuel cells a gasificationpower plant can have efficiencies ashigh as 60%–a very substantial gainover conventional technologies.

A.H.M. Zafrul Hossain;Executive Engineer, EGCB LTD.

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Integrated Gasification Combine CycleA.H.M. Zafrul Hossain

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Ap e t i t i o nsigned byover 50,000

people worldwidewas delivered re-cently at UNESCO,urging the WorldHeritage Commit-tee, which willmeet soon in Istan-bul, to add the Sun-darbans Forest inBangladesh to itslist of World Her-itage Sites in Dan-ger.

Stretching for 400,000 hectares alongIndia and Bangladesh, the Sundarbansis the world’s largest mangrove forest. Itencompasses the largest habitat of theBengal tiger and harbors other endan-gered species like the Irrawaddy and theGanges river dolphins. Its vegetationprovides a crucial natural defenseagainst cyclones to 4 million peoplewho live in and nearby the Sundarbans.

The Sundarbans were declared a WorldHeritage Site in 1967 and are also des-ignated a Biosphere Reserve. Thedecades of management efforts taken topreserve the ecosystem and improve thelives of the people who inhabit this areawill be wasted with the impending con-struction of a 1320 Megawatt coal plantby NTPC India, under Bangladesh-IndiaFriendship Power Company (Pvt) Ltd.The plant will be located 4 km awayfrom the buffer zone of the Sundarbans.

“Sacrificing the safety and livelihoods ofmillions of people who fish and farm inthis region for decades to come is unac-ceptable. Tens of thousands worldwidejoin our urgent call to remind both gov-ernments that the people and the envi-ronment come before coal, especiallywhen renewable energy alternativesexist”, said Payal Parekh, 350.org Pro-

gram Director.

The projected coal plant would take219,600 cubic meters of water everydayfrom the Poshur river and discharge

123,600 cubic me-ters of water aftercooling the genera-tors, polluting andaltering the balanceof the water onwhich the man-groves depend.

The plant will alsorequire importing4.72 million tons ofcoal per year to run,which will be trans-ported by boatthrough narrow wa-terways, adding the

risk of oil and coal spills, as well asnoise pollution to the Poshur river.

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Climate

July 16, 2016

50,000 Sign Petition Urging UNESCO to ProtectWorld’s Largest Mangrove Forest

EP Report

Anew report from WWF argues thatSouth East Asia’s energy needs

could be met from non-pollutingsources by 2050.

Nations such as Vietnam, Myanmar,Laos, Cambodia and Thailand are allrelying heavily on environmental dam-aging coal as an energy resource. Butaccording to WWF’s studies the mas-sive coal consumption and associatedpollution could be exchanged withsustainable energy.

The report claims that SEA could be al-most 100 percent reliable on sustain-able energy by 2050. Through the useof comprehensive scenarios, WWFlays out plans for how Vietnam, Myan-mar, Laos, Cambodia and Thailandcould move away from currently pol-luting coal plans and have the energyrequirements covered by sustainableenergy such as solar and water energy.

WWF are pushing to influence the na-

tional environmental policy in SouthEast Asia and is making progress inpersuading governments to thinkharder about alternative “green” en-ergy sources.

In Vietnam, the most coal-polluted na-tion of the five, and in Myanmar WWFare engaging with officials at a highpolitical level to discuss the future na-tional energy plans.

WWF says that many governments(but most notable in Vietnam andMyanmar) are seriously concernedabout pollution from coal -based en-ergy and progress is being made.

In particular, WWF says that Myanmaris undergoing enormous political andfinancial developments and it is notfledged with coal plants yet. So thetime is now for our alternatives to getinto play.

Sustainable Energy in Asia by 2050

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40

Climate

July 16, 2016

The Green Climate FundBoard closed its 13th

meeting on June 30 inSongdo, South Korea. Themeeting was anticipated tobe a key shift for the UN cli-mate financing entity fromoperational consolidation toits core task of funding miti-gation and adaptation proj-ects.

At the previous meeting inMarch 2016, the GCF Boardapproved a series of deci-sions to resolve operationalissues and gaps, includingthe adoption of the Fund’sfirst Strategic Plan, the WorkPlan for 2016, and the ac-creditation of new entities tofinance projects and pro-grams.

The next main priorities, ad-dressed during the 13 Boardmeeting (or B.13), concernedthe approval of new projectproposals, further accredita-tion of entities to partner withthe Fund, the establishmentof risk guidelines for creditand investment, the assess-

ment of the proposal pipelineand the programmatic ap-proach to funding proposals.

According to GCF official re-lease, at the June meeting theBoard approved the first nineprojects of 2016, for a totalUSD 256.6 million in GCFfunding. This represents a fur-ther progress from the previ-ous’ year financing activity(eight projects financed in2015 for a total GCF invest-ment of USD 168 million)but it is still far from the aspi-rational target of approvingUSD 2.5 billion in fundingproposals by the end of2016, announced in Febru-ary.

As of May 2016, the GCFpipeline comprised 41 publicand private sector fundingproposals which request atotal GCF funding of USD 2.4billion to support projectsand programs totaling USD6.6 billion in overall invest-ment, GCF documentationreports.

GCF Approves New Projects

With an aim to build thecapacity of govern-

ment officials on climatechange issues, the govern-ment recently signed a Mem-orandum of Understanding(MoU) with International In-stitute for Environment andDevelopment (IIED) and In-ternational Centre for Cli-mate Change andDevelopment (ICCCAD) toinitiate knowledge basedprograms under “LearningHub Events.”

Under the MoU, ICCCADwill facilitate different knowl-

edge sharing programs in-cluding seminar and sympo-sium, on monthly basis, withthe collaboration of Eco-nomic Relations Division(ERD) of Planning Commis-sion and IIED.

According to the MoU, oneof major the objectives of theinitiative is “to raise aware-ness among policymakers ofthe opportunities and risksassociated with climatechange and socio-economicdevelopment of a country.”

It also aims to build the ca-pacity of policymakers to as-

ERD to Get Expert Trainingon Climate Change

The all-important mon-soon forecast becomes a

national priority, with morethan 70 percent of India’s1.25 billion citizens engagedin agriculture and relying onweather predictions to de-cide when they will sow theirseeds and harvest their crops.

But getting the forecast rightremains a challenge, thanksto the complex - and stillpoorly understood - ways inwhich South Asia’s monsoonrains are influenced byeverything from atmosphericand ocean temperatures toair quality and global climatetrends. Even the amount ofice in Antarctica is suspectedto have an impact.

And it’s only getting harder tofigure out, scientists say, asthe monsoon becomes in-creasingly erratic.

A new study released re-cently in the journal ScienceAdvances helps clear up a bitof the mystery, by showing

that man-made climatechange is responsible formost of the change seen inocean surface temperaturesnear the equator across Asia,which in turn affect regionalrainfall patterns including theIndian monsoon.

By showing that link, thestudy indicates future oceanwarming in the region, whichcould in turn increase theamount of rainfall duringmonsoons, strengthen cy-clones and increase precipi-tation over East Asia.

“This has important implica-tions for understandingchanges in rainfall patternsfor a large, and vulnerablepopulation across Asia,” saidoceanographer Evan Weller,who led the research teamwhile he was at Pohang Uni-versity of Science and Tech-nology in South Korea,before recently shifting toMonash University in Aus-tralia.

Climate Change Warming AsianWaters, Altering Monsoon

sess the relevance of climatechange in developing policy.Another core objective of theagreement is to gather andshare relevant knowledgeand lessons derived fromcross-country experiences onparticular development is-sues to formulate a frame-

work for better policy makingapproach on climate change.

ERD Additional SecretaryShamima Nargis and ICC-CAD Director Dr SaleemulHuq signed the MoU at aceremony at the PlanningCommission.

EP

EP EP

ABB has been awarded orders to-taling more than $16 million byTransports Publics Genevois

(TPG), Geneva’s public transport opera-tor, and Swiss bus manufacturer HESS,to provide flash charging and on-boardelectric vehicle technology for 12 TOSA(Trolleybus Optimisation Système Ali-mentation) fully electric buses (e-buses)which will run on Line 23, connectingGeneva’s airport with suburbanGeneva. The e-buses can help save asmuch as 1,000 tons of carbon dioxideper year, when compared with existingdiesel buses.

ABB will deliver and deploy 13 flash-charging stations along an urban transitbus route, as well as three terminal andfour depot feeding stations. This will bethe world’s fastest flash-charging con-nection technology taking less than 1second to connect the bus to the charg-ing point. The onboard batteries canthen be charged in 15 seconds with a600-kilowatt boost of power at the busstop. A further 4 to 5 minute charge atthe terminus at the end of the line en-ables a full recharge of the batteries. Theinnovative technology was developedby ABB engineers in Switzerland.

“We are proud of this breakthroughtechnology to support Geneva’s visionof providing a silent and zero-emissionurban mass transportation for the city. Itprovides a model for future urban trans-port and reinforces ourvision of sustainablemobility for a betterworld” said ClaudioFacchin, President ofABB’s Power Grids divi-sion. “As part of ourNext Level strategy, weare committed to devel-oping customer-focusedsolutions and technolo-gies that help lower en-vironmental impact.”

The decision to deploy

TOSA on Line 23 was undertaken afterthe successful pilot of the first such e-bus on the route from Geneva airport tothe Palexpo exhibition center. The Line23 bus route will be slightly modified inorder to provide a fast connection toPraille-Acacias-Vernet, a new suburbbeing built to accommodate 11,000 flatsand office space for about 11,000 em-ployees. When fully commissioned in2018, the high-capacity articulatedbuses will depart from both terminusesat 10-minute intervals during peaktimes. The line carries more than 10,000passengers a day and the replacementof diesel buses by TOSA e-buses re-duces noise as well as greenhouse gasemissions.

As part of a separate award by HESS,ABB will supply 12 flexible drivetrainsolutions for the buses including inte-grated traction and auxiliary converters,roof-mounted battery units and energytransfer systems (ETS), as well as perma-nent magnet traction motors. Both con-tracts include five-year maintenanceand service agreements to ensure oper-ational reliability, efficiency and safety.

"The deployment of TOSA on Line 23 isthe result of the collaborative efforts ofthe public and private sector partnerswho invested in this vision. This inno-vative project opens the way for the fu-ture of mobility, by providing asustainable and environmentally-

friendly mass transport solution for thewell-being of our community," said LucBarthassat, Geneva’s State Councilor forTransport and Environment.

Geneva is one of the world’s leadingcities, recognized as a global center ofdiplomacy, a financial hub and a tech-nology and innovation center. It is alsoa popular tourist destination with a highquality of life. It hosts the highest num-ber of international organizations in theworld, including global headquarters ofinstitutions like the United Nations andthe Red Cross.

ABB provides a range of technologies tosupport mobility applications such asrailways, metros and electric buses andvehicles. Transportation and Infrastruc-ture is one of the three customer groups,served by ABB alongside utilities and in-dustry, and sustainable mobility is a keyfocus area within ABB’s Next Level strat-egy.

ABB is celebrating 125 years of itslegacy in Switzerland and has been ac-tively involved in the transportation sec-tor including rail. As a recent example,ABB technologies are helping to powerand ventilate the recently commis-sioned 57 km Gotthard base tunnelthrough the Alps - the world’s longestrailway tunnel.

ABB (www.abb.com) is a leading globaltechnology company inpower and automationthat enables utility, in-dustry, and transport &infrastructure customersto improve their per-formance while lower-ing environmentalimpact. The ABB Groupof companies operatesin roughly 100 coun-tries and employs about135,000 people.

Curtsey: ABB

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Technolog y

July 16, 2016

CO2-Free Public Transport in GenevaABB wins 1st commercial order for breakthrough 15-second flash charging technology

TOSA bus

EP

Coal is without any doubt the dirt-iest among the fossil fuels. But intechnical analysis it does not

support claims that coal fired powerplant would destroy Sundarban, Even ifall the planned coal fired power plantsare constructed beside Sundarban theplanned technology would ensure re-lease of SOX and NOX within tolerancelimits. Hence these must not be anycause of concern. I think monitoringsystem must be strengthened and effec-tive for addressing the concerns of anx-ious civil society and green groups.Associate Professor of Chemical Engi-neering Department BUET told theabove in an exclusive Interview withMollah Amzad Hossain, editor Energy &Power. The following is the full text ofhis interview.

EP: Paris Agreement provides commit-ment for keeping global emission risebelow 2 degree Celsius by 2100. On thebackground of above what are yourviews about Bangladesh approach toemission control?

KBK: Our carbon footprint now is al-most zero. For this the major actionshave to be taken by the developed na-tions. We have no scope of reducingcarbon footprint any further from the fi-nancial and technical points of view foradvancing our development initiatives.We have to continue using fossil fuelsfor fueling our economic development.

Bangladesh does not much prospect ofadditional hydropower generation. Wealso do not have enough sparable landfor large solar power plants. Windpower does not have mentionableprospect from whatever data and infor-mation we have now about it.

The price of crude oil remains low inglobal market for a while. Consequently

energy economy now cannot supportresearch and development of alternatefuel. Some projects in European coun-tries have run into financial crisis. Coun-try like Bangladesh does not haveopportunity yet to get out of fossil fueldependency.

EP: Power System Master Plan 2030 hasprescribed for a plan of 10% reliance onrenewable sources by 2030. Do youthink it is achievable?

KBK: In my opinion this is a highly am-bitious plan. Government may notachieve this target if generous subsidy isnot provided through feed in tariff. Gov-ernment subsidy played major role incountries where renewable energyachieved success.

EP: Many consider from the additionalstudies about wind energy that theremay be some potential for it. What areyour views?

KBK: I do not think so. I have knowl-edge about Australian wind mapping.The wind speed of Bangladesh com-pared with Australia is almost nothing.Moreover, the direction of windchanges very frequently. We have to in-stall very expensive wind turbineswhich can adjust with wind speed. So Ido not find that great a prospect forwind energy in Bangladesh.

EP: So you do not find much prospectsof expanding renewable energy inBangladesh?

KBK: I think that bio mass is the primesource of non- fossil fuel in Bangladesh.30% of our primary fuel comes frombiomass. Mainly it is used now as cook-ing fuel. Different residues are thesources. But efficiency is not above 8-10%.We must take initiative to enhanceefficiency. Benefits from renewable en-

ergy generation can be achieved if sideby side to enhancing bio mass fuel useplanned action program can belaunched after well-coordinated study.Efficient use of bio mass can also act aseffective deterrent for atmospheric pol-lution.

EP: Extensive works are being done inBangladesh for expanding use of ICS.Why it has failed to achieve popularitythough initiated in 1970s?

KBK: Use of ICS can increase efficiencyof biomass use in cooking to 40%.Actu-ally cooking in Bangladesh is very muchintegrated with social culture. So it wasnot possible to actually determine so farwhat type of stove people want. That is

Dr Kazi Bayezid Kabir

We have lost a golden opportunityfor strengthening energy security innot availing benefits from tri nationpipeline gas import from Myanmar.Our own primary fuel is still mak-ing 85% contribution. But fossil

fuel reserve is running out.

‘The Concerns for Rampal Power PlantDestroying Sundarban is Unrealistic’

43

Interview

July 16, 2016

the main reason for ICS not getting de-sired acceptance. Now efforts are therefor to popularize improved importedcookers side by side to ICS .But designof the stoves must take into account theviews and opinions of the users. Other-wise the desired objectives cannot beachieved.

EP: Research is ongoing on Bio Fuel indifferent countries .Do you find anyprospect of it in Bangladesh.

KBK: There is not any prospect of BioFuel in Bangladesh.But some possibili-ties can be created for it through plan-ning marine agriculture.

EP: Bangladesh has entered into muchawaited cross border power trading.What contribution do you think it canmake for expanding the energy securityand non -fossil fuel portfolio ofBangladesh?

KBK: We have lost a golden opportunityfor strengthening energy security in notavailing benefits from tri nation pipelinegas import from Myanmar. Our own pri-mary fuel is still making 85% contribu-tion. But fossil fuel reserve is runningout. Cross border trading will play amajor role in ensuring energy security.Power import from the regional coun-tries in phases will benefit Bangladesh.Green power portfolio will alsostrengthen from hydropower import.

EP: The discovered gas resource is onwane. Massive exploration campaign isessential for finding new resources. Butthis is not being done now. How do youlook at it?

KBK: We are lagging way behind ourneighboring countries in hydrocarbonexploration. In offshore areas not muchhas been done. In this scenario there isalternative but to conduct massive ex-ploration campaign for new resources inonshore and offshore areas. Govern-ment has initiated the process .Theseneed to be strengthened

EP: LNG import initiative has beenlaunched to meet gas deficit. It is beingtold that LNG will start flowing into gasgrid from 2018 anon increasing d sup-ply would go on increasing. What areyour views?

KBK: LNG import will without doubt in-crease the cost of fuel. But in gas basedcountry there are hardly any alternative.I suggest that government identifiessources of supply and concludes longterm contracts. We must not rely on sin-gle source for LNG supply. That willcause disruption to supply.

EP: PSMP 2010 provided for 50%power generation in 2030 to be coalbased. In PSMP 2016 coal contributionhas been reduced to 35%, another 35%will be gas /LNG based while 30% willcome from Nuclear, renewable andpower trading. How do you evaluatethis plan?

KBK: Look there are many aspectshere.It became impossible achievingfuel mix target envisioned in PSMP2010 for government not deciding onlocal coal resource exploitation. The re-duction of coal contribution has justifi-cation. But the planned target ofimported coal contribution has alsomajor challenges especially the importinfrastructure development. The otherchallenge is confirming long term coalsupply arrangements.

EP: What are your observations aboutmining of local coal resource?

KBK: I have a different view .In my opin-ion from economic point view importedcoal based power generation now willbe cheaper than using the coal nowbeing extracted from Barapukuria. Ithink the decision for underground min-ing of coal was not technically appro-priate. Open cut mining of local coalwherever is feasible is going to be themost appropriate .There are proventechnologies for managing all technicalchallenges and other impacts.

Mine water management is being seenas a major issue. In actual practice uponanalysis evidence that 200 deep tubewells and 15000 shallow tube wells inPhulbari and Barapukuria are pumping2800 liters of water every day. Bara-pukuria power plant is using 25 millionliter and coal mine is pumping out 80million liters every day. Open pit minein the area will not pump more waterthan all these put together. The waterpumped out for open pit mining upon

treatment can meet the requirements ofcommunity irrigation and other use likepower plant and local industries. Thatwill be a huge support for the localcommunity. Moreover, most of affectedland can be rehabilitated as or betterthan before for farming. Above all sig-nificant volume of fuel can be extractedfrom local source.

EP: Although not huge yet we havesome reserve of pit coal .What shouldbe done to mine this

KBK: I think we should plan to covertcoal to liquid and adopt a project formining pit coal. That will benefit us.

EP: Government has initiated a projectfor a 1320 MW coal based power plantin the first phase and add another 1320MW in the second phase at Rampal,Bagerhat. Private Sector CompanyOrion Group is also going to constructa power plant there. There are talksaround that these may destroy the Sun-darban mangrove forest. Green groupsare demanding for cancellation of theseprojects .How do you evaluate these?

KBK: Please note that there exists noother alternative now but to go for coalbased power generation in view of thepresent state of primary fuel availability.I think government is very sincere for re-stricting emissions from coal fired powerplants below acceptable limits. Therewas plan for setting up a super criticaltechnology using plant at Rampal in ac-cordance with the EIA in 2013.Therewas no compulsion for a FGD plantthere. There was suggestion for low SOXburner. But in appreciation of environ-mental protection government has nowplanned for ultra-supercritical technol-ogy. FGD plant and low SOX burnerhave been made mandatory.

Government has positive intention. Ifthe plants are constructed according toplan these will not create any issue forthe Sundarban. There is no cause forconcern.

We think it proper to mention some in-formation here. In the Rampal area 8-9months every year wind flows in the di-rection of south to west. During thistime no flue gas will flow towards theSundarban. Only for 3-4 months wind

44July 16, 2016

changes direction from north to south.Then the flue gas may go towards theSundarban. But we have to see whatamount of pollutants may remain in theflue gas.

After carefully reviewing the data andinformation I like to mention some factshere clearly. The air around Rampal andits surrounding has 9.1microgram/cubic meter SOX. FGD willbring it down to 1.5 microgram/cubicmeter. This situation cannot add morethan 9.1-9.9 microgram/cubic meterSOX to the air at 14 KM away from theplant at Sundarban. The environmentlaw permissible level is 80microgram/cubic meter.

Now come to NOX .The air in Rampaland Sundarban area now have 18 mi-crogram/ cubic meter NOX. The com-missioning of power plants would addanother 4 microgram/cubic meter.Butenvironment law 1997 permissible limitis 100 microgram/cubic meter.

The above clearly demonstrates thateven 4000 MW coal fired power plantsat Rampal if built and operated in accor-dance with plan will keep SOX andNOX emissions within permissible limit.These negate all concerns for coalbased power plants destroying the Sun-darban.

EP: Dry ash cooler method is going tobe used at Rampal plant. Coal will havecovered storage facility. But why thenthere are concerns of flying coal parti-cles polluting the air.

KBK: I think there is no genuine reasonfor such concern. The plant developerappears to have planned for effectivecoal and ash management .They arewell aware of these.

EP: All large projects under executionare now coal based. And these aremostly imported coal based. Do youthink government plans are in the rightdirection?

KBK: Please note that coal is an integralpart of the evolution of civilization.Bangladesh has no alternative but re-maining dependent on fossil fuel. I findnothing wrong in going for coal firedpower generation.

EP: Bangladesh has environment protec-tion act and law. International regula-tions are being observed where localregulations have limitations. There isDepartment of Environment (DOE) forpolicing the implementation of act, pol-icy and regulation .Why then there areconcerns?

KBK: There are environment pollutionsin our country for noncompliance oflaw and regulations in our country. But

government appears very sincere nowfor effective environment managementfrom emissions of coal power genera-tion. We have to be very careful in mon-itoring at every stage. DOE should setup a special unit for this. I think all con-cerns will gradually evaporate onceplant developers construct the plantsfollowing all standard provisions andguidelines and operate the plants ob-serving professional ethics.

45July 16, 2016

Report

Agroup of three Bangladeshi chil-dren left Dhaka on July 8, 2016 to

participate in the International Chil-dren Festival — NucKids 2016 to beheld in Russia.

The festival will take place in differentcities of Russia including St. Peters-burg and Moscow from July 10 to Au-gust 21, 2016. Russia’s State NuclearEnergy Corporation — ROSATOM isthe main host of the NucKids 2016.

Seventy children from 7 countries in-cluding Bangladesh, Russsia, Turkey,Belarus, Czech Republic, Vietnam andHungary are participating in the pro-gram.

Welcoming the participants, SergeiNovikov, Director ROSATOM says,“We are building nuclear power plantsin many countries and which has be-come a basis for bilateral cooperationfor several decades. Such projects pro-

vide an opportunity for strong interna-tional relations not only at economic,but also at cultural level. Nuclear Kidsproject allows kids from differentcountries of the world not only tobring their talent to light but also buildreal friendship among them. We areglad that this year, talentedBangladeshi kids are also joining ourNuclear Kids team.”

During the festival, children will takepart in different cultural activities andseveral grand concerts with their par-ticipation will be arranged in differentcities of Russia. Professional Russianartists will train and prepare the chil-dren for the concerts.

ROSATOM has been organizing theNucKids festival since 2009 for thechildren of those countries in whichRussia has implemented or in theprocess of implementing the nuclearpower projects.

This year SyedKaysan Faraj ofDhaka, AtiaSunjeda Oishyof Rajshahiand SharmiliNoshin ofBagerhat areattending thefestival fromBangladesh.

Bangladeshi Kids Participate in“NucKids” Fest in Russia

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