AMN
Bangladesh and India can cooperate in Research and Development (R&D) in the energy sector, says Dr. Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury, Power, and Energy Advisor to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. In an exclusive interview to Prasar Bharti Special Correspondent in Dhaka, Dr. Tawfiq said that India is ahead of many countries in the field of R&D. Bangladesh can gain if it can get access to R&D from India. He said that India is much ahead of Bangladesh in some of the frontier technologies like Hydrogen fuel and carbon capture and storage. Access to these frontier technologies, and cooperation in exploring these technologies, will benefit Bangladesh, said Dr. Tawfiq.
Elaborating upon other areas of cooperation in the energy sector, Dr. Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury said that he had recently participated in a conference that showcased the progress India has made in the field of Electric Vehicles (EV) including tri-wheelers. He said Bangladesh has 2-3 million electric tri-wheelers which it is trying to upgrade and improve. Bangladesh can benefit from India by cooperating in the EV sector, said Dr. Tawfiq.
Dr. Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury also highlighted the possibility of cooperation in the field of solar energy with India. He said Bangladesh has been working on a pilot project to develop a hybrid cooking system using solar and grid energy. Bangladesh can benefit and learn from advances made in this sector by India.
Highlighting the energy cooperation between Bangladesh and India, Dr. Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury said that Bangladesh imports close to 1700 MW from India both through its eastern and western parts. He said India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan need to come together for regional cooperation in the energy sector so that it may be possible to undertake both import and export of energy between the countries.
Dr. Tawfiq said that the recently opened Maitree pipeline which supplies diesel from India to Bangladesh is an example of win-win cooperation between the two countries. The pipeline provides an assured supply line of diesel to Bangladesh and at the same time it is providing an assured market for the Numaligarh oil refinery in India. Both countries should endeavour to try such solutions in the future also, said Dr. Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury.