15m kWh power can be saved in public buildings: Study
It is important to have a nationwide campaign on energy efficiency improvement for public buildings, state minister Nasrul Hamid says
About 11 to 15 million kilo-watt hours (kWh) of electricity could be saved if the energy saving potential is extrapolated for more than 250 public buildings in Dhaka region, a study says.
The saving potential is equivalent to the electricity used by one thousand homes in a year, it also said.
The findings were revealed at a workshop on the study on "Energy Efficiency in Public Buildings in Bangladesh" (EEPB) project on the occasion of the National Energy Security Day on 9 August.
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The workshop presented the study findings related to the huge potential of saving energy if public buildings use rooftop solar.
More than 1 million kilo-watt hours of energy could be saved in these buildings with a nominal investment of 1 million dollars and payback period of 5 to 12 years with better insulation, retrofitting, replacement of inefficient appliances and introducing rooftop solar systems, according to the study findings.
A team of national and international energy audit experts conducted 2-step energy audits in 12 selected public buildings and provided recommendations for maximising the efficiency of energy consumption for the buildings.
The study showed that 10 out of the 12 audited buildings could generate about 1 million kilo-watt hours of electricity from rooftop solar.
The Public Works Department (PWD) has more than 13,000 government buildings in the country and 250 buildings in Dhaka. Other government agencies also own thousands of public buildings. Considering all of them, the potential savings amount could be astounding.
As the chief guest, Nasrul Hamid, state minister for Power, Energy, and Mineral Resources, said "It is important to have a nationwide campaign on energy efficiency improvement for public buildings."
He also said "With systematic introduction and implementation of energy efficiency measures, we want to build a nation, an exception to the world, with utmost prosperity and energy consciousness."
Rajat Mishra, director general of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), said AIIB is keen and looking forward to working with the Government of Bangladesh to increase the uptake and investment in energy efficiency across all sectors including public and other commercial buildings.
The study was implemented by Sustainable and Renewable Energy Development Authority (Sreda), together with Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH and the Ministry of Housing and Public Works.
EEPB is funded by the Kigali Cooling Efficiency Program (K-CEP), and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) played an instrumental role in this study.
Dr Angelika Fleddermann, country director, GIZ Bangladesh, Axum Teferra, associate director, Kigali Cooling Efficiency Programme (K-CEP) and Rajat Misra, Md Shahid Ullah Khandaker, secretary, Ministry of Housing & Public Works and Md Habibur Rahman, secretary, Power Division, Ministry of Power, Energy & Mineral Resources also attended the event.
