The Advisory Council has approved the “Policy for Renewable Energy-Based Commercial Electricity Generation/Setting up of Power Plants with Private Participation, 2025,” aimed at cutting the cost of solar power and reducing Bangladesh’s dependence on fossil fuels.
Under the new policy, the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) will purchase only 20% of electricity from private renewable energy producers, allowing the rest to be sold directly to consumers. Power producers will also be permitted to use government transmission lines for a fee set by the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC), said Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam on Thursday.
“Previously, all electricity had to be sold to BPDB. Now producers can sell the majority directly to buyers of their choice, which will attract large-scale investment in solar power,” Shafiqul Alam said at a briefing at the Foreign Service Academy in Dhaka.
He cited Pakistan as an example, where private investment in solar energy has grown so much that producers no longer rely on government lines to sell power. “In Bangladesh, this policy will help reduce the cost of solar power, increase demand for renewable energy, and lower dependence on fossil fuels and LNG,” he added.
Shafiqul Alam also criticized the previous government’s private sector power policy, claiming it was used as a tool for profiteering. “Due to the Special Powers Act introduced in 2010, Tk67,000 crore had to be provided as subsidy last year. The new policy is designed to reduce subsidies and lower costs for consumers,” he said.
Highlighting broader governance reforms, he noted that 50 recommendations of the Reform Commission have been fully implemented, 37 partially, and about 280 are in progress. “Beyond these, ministries have undertaken several reforms on their own initiative, many times more than what the commission recommended. We will publish a detailed list of these achievements in the coming days,” he added.
