Industrial householders are no longer more seemingly to sleep soundly as they’re receiving less gas than they did three years ago no matter a huge mark construct bigger, said Ijaz Hossain, an energy professional and frail Buet professor.
He said industries consumed 166 BCF (billion cubic toes) of gas in the fiscal 2023-24, a decline when compared to the old three years. “Honest imagine!” he exclaimed, questioning whether industrial capability has diminished in size or if energy efficiency has improved.
Regardless, Hossain said, “Vitality is now too costly to extinguish.”
He made these remarks at a roundtable titled “Vitality efficiency in direction of carbon neutrality for the textile and apparel alternate of Bangladesh,” held at The Industrial In trend yelp of job in Dhaka the old day.
The event, jointly organised by Solidaridad, TBS, Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet), and ESTex, was once moderated by TBS Deputy Editor Sajjadur Rahman. Consultants, lecturers, and alternate leaders attended the session, the put Hossain highlighted that upright housekeeping by myself may perchance back industries put up to 10% of their energy consumption.
Speakers said Bangladesh, a world hub for trend merchandise, need to lower its carbon footprint to quit competitive and sustainable to satisfy the upcoming rules of the European Union. Consultants suggest for existence cycle assessments of energy, water, and chemical exercise in manufacturing, alongside science-basically based targets for carbon good aquire.
“We’ve the opportunity to head for energy efficiency as there are many ambiance pleasant technologies on the realm markets and on the same time consciousness wanted to prick energy consumptions,” said Hossain.
Then again, firms said whereas adopting energy-ambiance pleasant technologies holds promise, factories in Bangladesh face challenges in reducing working costs attributable to inconsistent energy quality, which diminishes the effectiveness of those developed machines. This dispute is additional aggravated by the excessive maintenance costs of such equipment, placing additional monetary strain on entrepreneurs, in step with alternate leaders and energy experts.
Shams Mahmud, managing director of Shasha Jeans Ltd, said there may perchance be a excessive disconnect between govt policies and the realities of the alternate.
“We’re the exercise of energy-ambiance pleasant mills and quite loads of technologies, however attributable to inconsistent energy offer, the lifespan of those ambiance pleasant technologies has diminished from 50 years to true two years,” said Shams, also a frail president of the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industrial.
He said they’re the exercise of a number of of the correct technologies on the earth and making these investments to make sure sustainable energy. Let’s assume, he said, “My father built a manufacturing unit for Tk60 crore, however to construct bigger the same manufacturing capability, it now costs Tk400 crore.”
He famous that even importing energy-saving fans, as discussed this day, entails main anguish. On the total, importing energy-ambiance pleasant machines outcomes in accusations of misdeclaration, leading to penalties as excessive as 200%.
The frail DCCI president also said the Ministry of Atmosphere, Wooded discipline, and Native climate Switch, has performed no role in encouraging the utilization of eco-pleasant technologies. “The complications we are highlighting must had been addressed by them (ministry),” he said.
To enhance renewable energy adoption and technical capability, banks want to construct low-interest loans on easy phrases. Then again, Shams lamented, “Our banks are presently incapable of offering low-interest loans. So, the put will we catch the funds? How can we undertake these technologies with loans at a 15% rate of interest?”
He also criticised the government’s policies, announcing, “We recurrently sight dreams for zero carbon emissions in policy documents, however there may perchance be no heart of attention on mitigation or adaptation measures.”
Azizur R Chowdhury, managing director of JM Materials and a director of Bangladesh Textile Mills Association, said that the skill consumption across the textile price chain for producing a garment is as follows: up to 35% is ancient in spinning, 25% in knitting or weaving, 40% in dyeing, and 5-7% in garment stitching.
“Within the textile alternate, now we bear wide rooftop discipline, which we are the exercise of to put in solar panels. Presently, 25-30% of our energy comes from solar energy. Then again, there are main responsibilities on solar system — 25% on solar panels, 37% on inverters, and 58% on solar structures. These excessive responsibilities feel like a discouragement from the government,” he said.
Mentioning the gas offer points, Chowdhury said, “When the gas mark rose from Tk15 to Tk30, we demanded uninterrupted gas offer with fixed strain. But now we’re no longer getting beefy-strain of gas.”
He highlighted a nasty trend the put many entrepreneurs are the exercise of cylindered gas in factories attributable to inadequate offer. “It’s dreadful, however we bear no determination however to withhold our operations working. One cylinder runs out, and one more is related. Each person knows that is against the law, however we’re pressured into it thanks to the lack of upright gas offer.”
Chowdhury lamented the absence of a clear policy, announcing, “We’re caught like a sandwich, with out a direction or solution in anticipate.”
Selim Reza Hasan, nation manager of Solidaridad, said Bangladesh’s textile and apparel sector is popping into an increasing number of essential no longer true for the nation’s economy however also as a first-rate provider of trend merchandise to the realm market.
Vitality, chemical and water exercise efficiency are inevitable for the circularity and using in direction of “Safe Zero” — meeting the environmental sustainability rules of the European Union.
“Improving energy efficiency is the most main pathway for the alternate in direction of good aquire of water and carbon footprints. Bangladesh, because the realm hub for manufacturing of the craze merchandise, needs to produce a roadmap to lower the carbon footprint from the alternate for sustainability and to dwell competitive in the realm market,” he said.
Hasan also said, “It’s essential that we undertake a existence cycle evaluation of the skill, water and chemical consumption in the manufacturing processes, and placement science-basically based purpose initiatives for good aquire of carbon footprint from the provision chain.”
Professor Mohidus Samad Khan of Buet and a senior fellow of ESTex Foundation, said a gape was once carried out to get insights from alternate stakeholders to produce and validate energy policy solutions for the textile and apparel sector.
In preserving with the findings, 66% of manufacturing alternate representatives emphasised that energy efficiency and renewable energy are essential for the field’s prolonged-term sustainability.
The gape also printed key boundaries hindering the adoption of energy-ambiance pleasant practices. 37% of respondents recognized an absence of knowledge because the principle obstacle, 26% cited insufficient funding, and 16% pointed to regulatory constraints as most main challenges. Professor Khan underscored these insights as essential for shaping centered energy policies to enhance the alternate’s enhance and sustainability.
He said a huge number of respondents indicated that their organization lacks grunt energy efficiency targets.
Vitality professional Yameen Farook said, for the 20-25 years he has been being attentive to the dispute of quality energy offer and efficiency, however no improvement has been made.
Farook said factories bear to be rated with a giant title marking procedure in step with their efficiency. Those performing neatly must be equipped with lower-price energy, tax relief from the NBR, and quite loads of incentives.
“Factories with lower efficiency and americans with better efficiency can no longer be charged the same rate for his or her funds,” he said.
Mohammad Shah Alam, DGM of Epyllion Neighborhood, said loads of the factories are complying with all requirements of social and environmental compliance, however there may perchance be not any disagreement between most compliant and non-compliant factories by methodology of advantages from traders and govt.
Md Ziaul Haque, director of the Department of Atmosphere, SM Monirul Islam, deputy CEO of Infrastructure Model Company, Abul Kalam Azad, manager of Honest Vitality Transition of ActionAid Bangladesh, Md Abdullah Al Mamun, assistant director of SREDA, Sarwar Zahan, an energy professional, Sadia Raisa Khan, adviser and nation advisor of GIZ Bangladesh, Shajedul Islam Maruf, DGM of Beximco Restricted (Textile), Kowshick Sen, manager of Eurocentra Bangladesh, Ahamed Imtiaz, managing director of Viola Properties, and Abdullah Yousuf Khan of Solidaridad also spoke on the event.