Prime Minister’s Energy Advisor Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury has said there is no immediate solution to the existing load shedding as the government has reduced the import of primary fuel to conserve foreign currency reserve.
“We have to cut fuel import considering the future situation as part of the plan to conserve foreign currencies,” he told reporters on Sunday on the sideline of a seminar on the country’s development, reports UNB.
Reinterring his call to people to be more patient and try to check any misuse of power in their consumption, he said developed nations like Britain and Germany are now experiencing 4-5 hours of load shedding.
The energy advisor said that the government had thought that the Russia-Ukraine war would stop but it has not happened.
He said there was a plan to import 1,600 MW of power from India’s Adani Group and also get 1,000 MW from the Rampal power plant.
But transmission lines for these two projects are not ready and it will take 3-4 months more to get electricity from those.
“As a result, it is unlikely to improve the power supply situation very soon,” he said.
He, however, said the government is trying to bring some natural gas from the Bhola district and raise 1000 MW of power generation from solar energy.
“There is also a plan to replace some existing diesel-run irrigation pumps with solar-run irrigation system,” he added.