Domestic and foreign experts urged Bangladesh to cancel unfair energy agreements, reduce import dependence and make better use of domestic resources to address its energy crisis. The calls came at a policy roundtable in a Dhaka hotel on Sunday afternoon, organised by the Institute of Policy, Governance and Advocacy for Development (IPGAD). Speakers said technical measures must be accompanied by strong political will, transparency and accountability to build a sustainable energy system.

SOAS University of London economist Mushtaq Khan said short-term supply problems and longer-term structural and production weaknesses had created the current situation. He said that during the Awami League government, paper electricity-generation capacity rose fourfold while costs increased 11-fold and capacity charges rose 20-fold. He argued that disputes over sovereign contracts should focus on proving corruption and irregularities at the time agreements were made, rather than ordinary international arbitration over unpaid bills.

Participants also stressed renewable energy, domestic gas exploration and local manufacturing capacity. BIISS research fellow Lam-Ya Mostak said energy had become a strategic resource and warned against replacing one import dependency with another through solar-panel imports. Other speakers raised concerns about quick rentals, LNG imports, budget deficits, foreign strategic control of energy infrastructure, competition failures and the need for policy changes toward affordable, sustainable and environmentally friendly energy production.