Rural Bangladesh sweats over recurring outages during extreme heat

Electricity consumption for cooling rises rapidly as temperatures smash records

A rise in production and imports of power has failed to keep up with the demand heightened by extreme heat, leading to recurring outages in Bangladesh, especially in the rural reaches. 

In many areas, customers are suffering due to 10-15 hours of power cuts a day, even during Iftar and Sahri in Ramadan, the Muslim holy month of fasting. 

The heatwave has worsened the situation, with the mercury hovering around oppressive 40 degrees Celsius in the beginning of summer. On Monday, the mercury shot up to 43 degrees Celsius at Ishwardi in Pabna – the highest in two decades and the second highest in 50 years. 

Daily production has also increased to record 15,604 MW in the past week, but it has not been enough to feed the daily demand that has reached around 16,000 MW as citizens have started using fans and air-conditioners excessively for cooling amid the heatwave, according to the Power Development Board. 

The demand is around 2,000 MW more than what it was in the same period a year ago, according to an analysis of PDB data. 

State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid has apologised for the situation which Power Secretary Habibur Rahman hopes will ease with the start of the Eid holiday and a fall in temperature. 

In a Facebook post, Nasrul said the government moved to increase production because it had predicted record demand due to Ramadan amid summer heat and irrigation season. 

“But the demand has surpassed our prediction by far due to the unprecedented heat with the temperature rising to the highest levels in 50 years. As a result, many areas are suffering power cuts, causing pain to people, especially children and the elderly. We express our sincere sympathy and sorrow over the unexpected suffering,” he wrote. 

Speaking to bdnews24.com on Tuesday, Nasrul said although Bangladesh’s power stations have the capacity to produce 22,000 MW, it is not realistic to expect to use the entire capacity. 

In any system, the capacity should be 50 percent more than the demand, according to him. 

The recently opened coal-fired power plant in Bagerhat’s Rampal halted production two days ago due to a technical glitch. Several other large power stations are also not in operation now due to maintenance work or gas crisis. 

Secretary Habibur said they had predicted a 10 percent rise in demand this year, but it actually shot up due to the heat. “The Eid holiday will begin tomorrow (Wednesday) and the Rampal power plant will resume production tonight. So, the situation will slightly improve.” 

He also hoped the heatwave would ease and lead to a fall in demand. “The crisis will ease in a day or two.” 

Most of the time, power cuts caused by the demand-supply mismatch are occurring in the areas under the coverage of the Rural Electrification Board. The nearly 30 million customers of the REB have been receiving 7,000 MW daily against a demand of 9,000 MW for a week. 

The power cuts have worsened the unbearable heat, angering people in many areas. On Monday night, angry residents attacked an REB office at Chhagalnaiya in Feni after up to 20 hours of power cuts were reported there. 

[Writing in English by Osham-ul-Sufian Talukder]