12 December 2022
-----------------------------
Energy Data Mismanagement may increase the Current Electricity Crisis in Bangladesh: Unreliable and inconsistent data signals disaster for the long-term energy plans
Challenges in Energy Data Management in Bangladesh: Unreliable and inconsistent data signals disaster for the long-term energy plans
[12 December 2022, Dhaka] The recently published report on “Energy Data Management Challenges in Bangladesh'' by the Bangladesh Working Group on External Debt (BWGED) highlights the several agencies under the Ministry of Energy, Power and Mineral Resources (MOPEMR) responsible for disseminating misleading energy data. The report assesses available energy data from these agencies to find missing, erroneous, and inconsistent datasets. This conflicting data from different agencies under the same Ministry is misleading information for planners to use reliably to make future energy plans.
MOPEMR is the key governing agency of the energy sector in Bangladesh. The Energy and Mineral Resource Division (EMRD) is responsible for supplying primary energy data such as coal, fossil gas, and petroleum while the Power Division is responsible for secondary energy such as electricity. Petrobangla deals with the production, transmission, and distribution of domestic energy resources, particularly coal and gas through its subsidiary companies.
The report also emphasized that the recent electricity blackouts and grid failures are one of the signs that the foundation of accurate baseline energy information has been off for a long time in Bangladesh. Moreover, there are also severe concerns about credible governments or other entities reviewing and auditing the data for accuracy, transparency, and integrity along with erroneous data management.
The report found 1,013 cases of more electricity being generated than the capacity to generate the power. In the most extreme cases, the power generation to power capacity mismatch was more than 200%. BPDB (2020-21) stated that 80,423 gWh (million units) of electricity was generated, while grid-connected power plants generated 80,294.75 million units. However, BPDB never mentioned the source of the additional 128.25 million units of electricity.
The report shows, government entities often underreport the generation capacity of power plants compared to their actual capacities. The report highlights that the BPDB Monthly Progress Report of July 2022 showed the total generation capacity of grid-connected power plants was 22,482 MW, while the Daily Generation Report on 30 June 2022 shows the total capacity was 21,396 MW. This is 1,086 MW less than the amount mentioned in the Progress Report. Meanwhile, the Power Division reports that the total installed capacity of the country is 25,700 MW including off-grid and captive power plants. Meaning there are major inconsistencies in data within the entities.
The report further analyzes the published renewable energy data to highlight several inconsistencies in the amount of actual installed power production capacity. If the installed capacity of off-grid renewable energy is 359.24 MW as the Sustainable and Renewable Energy Development Authority (SREDA) reported, plus another 3,184 MW from captive power plants as reported by ADB Institute and 249.15 MW (BPDB reported as 253 MW) according to BREB Annual Report, the total installed capacity could be 25,188.39 MW to 26,278.24 MW respectively. The inconsistencies in the amount of actual installed power production capacity reported by these agencies indicate that there is no reliable, verified capacity baseline.
Moreover, the data management system has no mechanisms to calculate the generation from captive, commercial, and off-grid solar and hydroelectric power plants and hence is excluded from the national power generation records. This means that the power system utilization could be much lower than 40%, causing economic harm.
The report highlights that fossil gas contributes to 61% in the primary energy mix in Bangladesh. Hence, the accuracy of data on fossil gas is much more important than any other sub-sectors of energy. Petrobangla is mandated to collect, compile, analyze and publish respective information on the production, import, and distribution of petroleum and mineral resources including Domestic Fossil Gas (DFG) and Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG). However, no data on petroleum is available on the website of Petrobangla. In reality, none of the agencies provide real-time data on coal, Heavy Fuel Oil (HFO), and High-Speed Diesel (HSD).
Moreover, the report notes that Petrobangla listed 71 DFG-based power plants with an installed capacity of 12,734 MW. However, this list excludes power plants such as Ashulia 11 MW Power Plant, Chandina 11 MW DFG Power Plant, etc. although, according to the Daily Generation Report of BPDB and PGCB, these power plants are generating electricity regularly. Moreover, the list is not updated as retired power plants are not deleted from the database which makes it an even more unreliable source for future forecasting, preventing planners from making effective energy plans based on credible data.
The report recommends ensuring transparency, and integrity in energy sector data collection, compilation, and dissemination, investing in financial implications of erroneous or manipulated data, including the private sector in updating reports. The report further recommends establishing automated software-based data management systems, delaying the formulation of the Integrated Energy and Power Master Plan to ensure effectiveness based on updated energy and economics data.