Staff Reporter :
The government will again move to raise power tariff side by side with improving the customer service.
This indication was dropped by State Minister for Power and Energy Nasrul Hamid on Sunday while addressing as chief guest at the General Managers’ Conference 77 Polli Bidyut Samity (PBS) of the Rural Electrification Board (REB) at its Headquarters in Nikunja in the capital.
He said, REB should reduce corruption and curb system loss to safe about Tk600 crore annually.
The minister hoped that the power sector would be free from corruption in 2016.
“The success of the government to provide electricity connection to rural houses is depending on you as you (General Managers) are worked closely with general people,” the minister said.
REB Chairman Major General Moin Uddin, Director General of Power Cell Muhammad Hossain and Board Members of REB, among others, spoke in the function.
Every where including load management, construction of power supply lines, realizing electricity bills and service providing to consumers use of higher technology and ICT is must to do these jobs smoothly and corruption free, he said.
The REB has made a history providing electricity connection among thousands of people each month, the minister said.
Major General Moin Uddin said, REB will provide 30 lakh electricity connections among new customers by 2016.
UNB Add The junior minister, however, did not give any detail of the Government’s plan as to when and how much it would raise the power tariff. In September last year, the government raised the gas price and power tariff by 2.93 percent and 26.29 percent respectively on average at the consumer level.
As per present provision, if the government wants to raise power tariff and gas price, it has to submit proposal to the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC). After holding public hearing on the issue through a certain procedure, then the regulator announces its decision. Nasrul Hamid said the government is also strongly considering replacing pipe-line gas of household consumers with liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). To implement the plant, the government will discuss with private operators of LPG business.
“We want to replace 70 percent pipe-gas with LPG within the next 3-4 years,” he said while talking to reporters in the sideline of the function.
He also disclosed the government plan to bring the whole of Chittagong Hill Tracts area under electrification within the next three years and gradually replace the Dhaka city’s overhead electricity cables with underground ones.
