The New Nation - Internet Edition

UNB, Dhaka

Infrastructure Development Company Limited (IDCOL), a non-bank financial institution, is planning to produce solar panels locally in an effort to bring the country's rural areas under power supply network in a faster way.

"We've planned to produce solar panel to make it cheaper as well as expand our service areas in line with the government vision of 'Electricity for all by 2020'," IDCOL's newly appointed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Executive Director Islam Sharif told UNB.

IDCOL now imports solar panels from various countries, including China and India, which is costlier for local users. "But, if we can produce the solar panel locally it would be cheaper for the villagers to use it as an individual power system," Sharif said.

Sharif, who served as Vice-president of Citibank NA in New York, suggested that the government should go for a comprehensive campaign to encourage people to use solar energy as the national power grid is unable to cope with the growing power demand.

"We also encourage the businessmen to install solar energy system in their industries and we're ready to assist them (businessmen) in this regard," he said.

Sharif said the country's most development plans focus on the capital or metro cities. "But," he said, "IDCOL turns its focus on urban, suburb and rural areas."

The IDCOL boss said they also have a plan for setting up their own power plants in different regions of the country where poor road communications hamper local trades.

About IDCOL activities, Sharif said IDCOL promotes solar home systems (SHSs) in rural areas under a programme jointly being financed by IDA, Global Environment Facility (GEF) and KfW & GTZ.

IDCOL has made an upward revision in its target of financing 300,000 SHSs by 2009 as over 295,000 SHSs have already been installed.

The IDCOL CEO said the programme is being implemented through 15 partner organizations (POs) -- Grameen Shakti, BRAC Foundation, Srizony Bangladesh, COAST Trust, TMSS, IDF, CMES, Upokulio Bidyuatayon O Mohila Unnayan Shamity (UBOMUS), Shubashati, BRIDGE, Padakshep Manabik Unnayan Kendra (PMUK), Palli Daridra Bimochan Foundation (PDBF), Hilful Fuzul Samaj Kalyan Sangstha, Mukti Cox's Bazar, and Rural Services Foundation (RSF).

SHSs are sold (mostly through micro-credit) by POs to the households and business entities in remote rural areas of Bangladesh, Sharif said, adding that IDCOL provides refinancing facility to the POs and channel grants to reduce the SHS costs as well as support the institutional development of the POs. "IDCOL also provides technical, logistic, promotional and training assistance to the Pos."

About cheaper biogas plants, Sharif said those plants consume huge time and space to produce energy, but solar energy takes only 1-2 hours for power generation and only the rooftop of any house for installation.

"Even then, IDCOL is also involved in the promotion of biogas plants across Bangladesh."

Since June 2006, he said, they have set up over 7,000 biogas plants in rural areas through its partner prganizations under the National Domestic Biogas and Manure Programme (NDBMP). It has a target of financing 60,000 such plants by 2010. So far, 2400 biogas plants have been set up.

Gas produced through these plants is used for cooking and lighting of rural households. The slurry of biogas plants, being a very good organic fertilizer, is used to maintain soil fertility and increase crop production apart from being fish feed.