Effective persuasion underway for energy transition: SREDA

“We are actively pursuing an energy transition towards renewable energy, especially solar, which would contribute for achieving climate goals (Net Zero by 2050),” SREDA Chairman Muzaffar Ahmed told BSS.

He said Bangladesh is rapidly expanding solar and other renewables like wind, hydro, biomass/biogas and as part of the initiative a campaign was underway to introduce solar power at homes, rooftops and parks and promote its use for irrigation.

Ahmed said the government was supporting individuals and organizations through various facilities to install solar panels and other renewable power plants for energy transition and achieve the target of the net zero.

Energy Adviser of the interim government Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan earlier said Bangladesh’s future depends on solar and other renewable energy and “we must ensure the energy transition without barrier”. 

He said that the government expects to save around Tk.420 crore every year by approving a new set of solar power tariffs through a fully open and competitive tendering process.

The newly approved proposals projects with gross capacity of 918 MW of solar power had originally been initiated under the now-repealed Speedy Supply of Power and Energy (Special Provision) Act, 2010, he said.

The adviser said the fresh competitive tenders vindicated the government’s concerns.

“In each of the 12 projects, we secured power prices that were two to three cents per kilowatt-hour lower than before. This alone will save Tk.420 crore a year,” he noted.

According to SREDA, Bangladesh's renewable energy was growing, led by solar, with total installed capacity around 1690.63 MW) as of 2025, aiming for 40 percent clean energy by 2041 through major solar parks, rooftop solar, and off-grid systems.

The on-grid renewable power rose to 1,312.37 MW and the off-grid rose to 378.26 MW in the country, while various initiatives were taken up the government to increase renewable power stake in the total generation.

SREDA said the new Renewable Energy Policy 2025 aimed to accelerate this, focusing on rooftop solar for industries (RMG) and rural electrification, but it was facing challenges in grid integration and scaling up.

The government, along with private companies, has been developing large solar projects and rooftop systems across the country, which efforts would help reduce of electricity bills, especially for homes and small industries. 

Power secretary Farzana Momtaz recently said industries were given opportunity to generate electricity from renewable sources on their own initiatives and sell it to the government after their required consumption.  

“Net Metering Guidelines-2025 was updated to increase use of rooftop for solar panels. The new guideline gave another opportunity to use 100 percent of solar power instead of 70 percent,” she said.

According to met office, Bangladesh has a natural advantage for solar power generation, as it enjoyed around 300 sunny days a year. 

Officials said so far over 6 million units of Solar Home Systems (SHS) were installed in off-grid areas, supplying power to rural communities, while several solar farms are now contributing to the national grid, helping reduce pressure on traditional power stations.

Besides, businesses and homeowners of solar panels can sell their unused power through the net metering system, making solar investment more profitable.

Organisations working on renewable energy said Nordic nations like Sweden, Norway and Denmark virtually took the lead for the transition while big economies like China, US, India, and the UK also made significant progress for enhancing renewable  energy production.

World Economic Forum's Fostering Effective Energy Transition 2025 report said “after several years of slow momentum, energy transition progress has accelerated” in line with the Energy Transition Index (ETI), which benchmarks 118 countries on their current energy system performance and on the readiness of their enabling environment, reports BSS. 

The index found improvements in energy equity and sustainability driven by easing energy prices, subsidy reforms, lower energy and emission intensity and increased share of clean energy but “energy security has made more limited progress, and transition readiness momentum has slowed”.