Bangladesh has sought USD $1:00 billion budgetary support to pay foreign debt of outstanding power and energy bills worth of $2.2 billion.
Newly appointed Power, Energy, Rail, Road Transport, and Bridges adviser Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan made the request to visiting World Bank country director Abdoulaye Seck after a meeting at the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources in the Secretariat on Wednesday.
“We have around $2.2 billion foreign debt on power and energy import,” said Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan at the meeting. So, the government will require $1:00 billion as budgetary support to make the gap, according to him.
Responded to him, World Bank country director Abdoulaye Seck said the bank will consider it if it will get proposal from Bangladesh on budgetary support on power and energy.
He congratulated to the interim government.
At the meeting, Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan also said the interim government has suspended all negotiations, project selections, and purchasing processes of power and energy projects under the ‘controversial’ Quick Enhancement of Electricity and Energy Supply (Special Provision) Act 2010.
Besides, it also endorsed decision to suspend power and natural gas tariff hike under government’s executive order.
The government also decided to follow the public procurement act 2008 on procurement of services and products, he also informed at the meeting.
Bangladesh also planned to expand the use of renewable in coming days, according to him.
Senior power division secretary Md Habibur Rahman, energy and mineral resources division secretary Md Nurul Alam and finance secretary Dr Md Khairuzzaman Mozumder also attended the meeting.
