A total of 3,457 solar irrigation systems have been installed across the country to boost renewable energy use in agriculture, Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Iqbal Hasan Mahmud told parliament on Monday.
The minister also said the government is reviewing contracts signed with privately operated power plants to assess their effectiveness, economic rationality, and compatibility with current energy realities.
As part of the government’s policy to reduce dependence on costly quick rental plants, all such power plants have already been retired, the minister said.
“This has ended an era of costly power generation and created an opportunity to make the sector more sustainable and efficient,” he said.
The government is placing special emphasis on renewable energy to build a reliable, affordable, and environmentally friendly energy system, with various projects being implemented for solar, wind, and other renewable sources.
The solar irrigation systems have been established through various projects of BADC, BMDA, RDA, and BREB. The government is prioritising solar-powered irrigation pumps to reduce agricultural production costs, decrease diesel dependence, and increase environmentally friendly technology use.
The minister said recoverable natural gas reserves stand at 7.63 trillion cubic feet as of 1 January 2026. Total gas discovered in 29 fields amounts to 29.74 trillion cubic feet, of which 22.11 trillion cubic feet had been extracted by 31 December 2025.
As of 10 June, the country had 5,29,562 tons of fuel oil in stock, including diesel, octane, petrol, furnace oil, jet fuel, kerosene, and marine fuel.
The minister said global oil prices rose due to the Middle East conflict involving Iran and the US-Israel. Although prices started decreasing from May, they remain above break-even levels.
BPC is incurring losses of approximately Tk78 crore per day in diesel, octane, and petrol sales. From March to June 11, actual losses amount to approximately Tk17,039.56 crore. However, fuel supply has been maintained at lower domestic prices, and prices will be reduced when international prices fall to tolerable levels.
