22 July 2020 | The Daily Star
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Reforms desired in Bangladesh's energy sector have long been trapped in a policy dragnet that encouraged expansion of coal-based power generation while refusing to adopt cheaper, eco-friendly renewable energy on a scale that is necessary. With our fast-depleting gas reserves and the well-documented damaging effects of coal-based plants that far outweigh their benefits, a shift in existing policy is thus urgent. Experts have often noted how the policy continues to favour quick fixes over long-term reforms in line with questions of sustainability, future uncertainty about the availability of coal, its large carbon footprint and the global shift to renewable sources. At a webinar on Monday, speakers from Bangladesh and India also highlighted this issue. They specifically pointed to the Rampal power station in Bangladesh and the Adani-Godda power plant in Jharkhand, India, which they said threaten to destroy the environment as well as people's lives and livelihoods.
While China and India, the largest users of coal, are gradually winding down their dependence on it and shifting to renewable and nuclear energy, their continued mining as well as exporting of coal-related technology to countries like Bangladesh suggest their lack of concern for the wider ramifications of such a position. But the future lies in renewables, and so countries that are still heavily dependent on coal should seriously reconsider their policy. According to a recent report of the Carbon Tracker Initiative, a nonprofit research organisation, it is already cheaper to run new renewables than new coal plants in all major markets including the USA, China, India, etc. By 2030, it will be cheaper to build new renewables than to run existing coal plants everywhere. From an environmental perspective, any shift to renewables will remain incomplete unless everyone participates. Clearly, the enthusiasm for the long-term benefits that investment in renewable energy offers is not yet shared equally by everyone but the global crises of Covid-19 and climate change are proof that we, all of us, need to act fast. The business-as-usual approach is not going to work in this changing world.
It is also important for the energy planners of Bangladesh to consider the uncertainties surrounding imported coal. According to some experts, long-term supply of coal is becoming uncertain not because coal is running out or becoming costly, but because the future of mining coal itself is getting uncertain, thanks to the efforts of environmental activists and the anti-coal lobby targeting the insurers and re-insurers of coal mines and projects. Experts point out to reports of divestment of coal shares by some banks and pension funds as well as withdrawal of insurance, making coal mining and coal-fired power generation businesses unsustainable. Therefore, it is high time the authorities revisit their energy policy, phase out coal-based power plants and embrace renewable energy, which will not only be beneficial for our environment but also create thousands of jobs, especially in the rural sectors.
Link: https://www.thedailystar.net/editorial/news/investing-renewables-the-way-the-future-1934085
While China and India, the largest users of coal, are gradually winding down their dependence on it and shifting to renewable and nuclear energy, their continued mining as well as exporting of coal-related technology to countries like Bangladesh suggest their lack of concern for the wider ramifications of such a position. But the future lies in renewables, and so countries that are still heavily dependent on coal should seriously reconsider their policy. According to a recent report of the Carbon Tracker Initiative, a nonprofit research organisation, it is already cheaper to run new renewables than new coal plants in all major markets including the USA, China, India, etc. By 2030, it will be cheaper to build new renewables than to run existing coal plants everywhere. From an environmental perspective, any shift to renewables will remain incomplete unless everyone participates. Clearly, the enthusiasm for the long-term benefits that investment in renewable energy offers is not yet shared equally by everyone but the global crises of Covid-19 and climate change are proof that we, all of us, need to act fast. The business-as-usual approach is not going to work in this changing world.
It is also important for the energy planners of Bangladesh to consider the uncertainties surrounding imported coal. According to some experts, long-term supply of coal is becoming uncertain not because coal is running out or becoming costly, but because the future of mining coal itself is getting uncertain, thanks to the efforts of environmental activists and the anti-coal lobby targeting the insurers and re-insurers of coal mines and projects. Experts point out to reports of divestment of coal shares by some banks and pension funds as well as withdrawal of insurance, making coal mining and coal-fired power generation businesses unsustainable. Therefore, it is high time the authorities revisit their energy policy, phase out coal-based power plants and embrace renewable energy, which will not only be beneficial for our environment but also create thousands of jobs, especially in the rural sectors.
Link: https://www.thedailystar.net/editorial/news/investing-renewables-the-way-the-future-1934085