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Accurate data is critically important for instant decision-making, trend projections, and future planning in the energy sector. It is a key element that forecasts capital expenditures, balances demand and supply management, and assesses generation capacity. It also assists with the analysis of transmission & distribution, and pollution control measures and provides the factual basis for effective communication. Historical data on solar irradiation, wind speed, and velocity of water flow is obligatory to assess and predict the potential of renewable energy also. This baseline data is also the key prerequisite for designing upstream, midstream, and downstream services to meet current demands and project future requirements.
Several agencies under the Bangladesh Ministry of Energy, Power and Mineral Resources (MOPEMR) are responsible for accumulating, analyzing, and disseminating energy data. An assessment of available data from these agencies found missing data, errors, and conflicting information. 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.
There are 1,013 cases found where more electricity is 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.
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 published renewable energy data highlights 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.
Fossil gas contributes to 61% of 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).
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.
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 is critically important. We further recommend 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.