Major decisions on coal likely within this year

Sharier Khan

Govt working on approval of coal policy, open-pit mining at Barapukuria, resettlement of affected people.

Within this year, the government will take several major and thorny decisions on developing the coal sector, including approval of the coal policy, an open-pit mine in Barapukuria, resettlement of people affected by the existing mine and development of a mine city.
The government is already working on the mine city in Barapukuria by identifying areas to be acquired. This mine city will initially aim at providing livelihood and living facilities to 10,000 families and ultimately give room to one lakh families, says Towfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury, adviser to the prime minister on energy.
Towfiq-e-Elahi pointed out that the government has signed a draft memorandum of understanding (MoU) with villagers who are affected by land subsidence around the Barapukuria coalmine area. “Their resettlement will be implemented in phases,” he noted.
“Our bigger concern is to ensure these affected people their livelihood. We aim at giving jobs to the second generation of these affected people,” he added.
A government committee has already recommended quick framing of a human resettlement action plan for the villagers affected by the Barapukuria coalmine in line with the one for the Jamuna Multipurpose Bridge project. Such a plan should be chalked out within a few months.
Till this plan of “international standard” is approved for action, the people should be immediately given a standard compensation package and alternative shelter, said a source quoting the committee’s report submitted to the energy ministry late last month.
Deep grievances are brewing among several villages around the mine for the last two years. The mining project was implemented without recognising that the mine would cause land subsidence leading to loss of agricultural land, water supply and cause environmental damage.
For now, the government is addressing the water issue in the area by installing 600 deep tube wells (Tara Tubewells). The subsoil water level in around 15 villages in Barapukuria rapidly dropped as the mine is pumping out huge quantity of water for coal production. Towfiq said the work order for these pumps would be issued this month.
Identifying coal as one of the vital natural resources that needs to be developed for future energy security of the country, Towfiq said in the past the government had undertaken mining project without informing the people its consequences on the environment and agricultural land. The government had not even kept any allocation to address the environmental issues.
“But in future all such projects should be done in a transparent manner by informing and involving the people,” he said. The draft coal policy that the government did not approve in the last four years will soon see the light of day. “We are working on it. We hope to approve it within a few months. The main focus would be to ensure the best usage of coal,” Towfiq said.
He noted the future of power would be dependent on coal as well as nuclear technology. “Seventy-five percent of power in France comes from nuclear power stations and one third of power in the USA also comes from nuclear power stations,” he quipped.
Meanwhile, the eight-member committee headed by a joint secretary of the energy ministry recommended that a mining city be developed as per the Resettlement Action Plan. This city would provide amenities, shelter and livelihood as an alternative to the affected people.
As part of this action plan, the government should appoint a third party organisation–possibly a non-government organisation–to conduct a baseline survey in the affected area to assess the size of the population, their assets, cropland and livestock, schools and other educational institutions etc. If there is a slum in the area, it should also be assessed.
Till the plan is implemented, the villagers living in vulnerable structures should be relocated to the East Camp of the Barapukuria mine. The East Camp is a structure built during the project construction period, said the committee that was formed in January to look into the land subsidence of Barapukuria.
All future mine projects should be implemented after conducting a feasibility study, undertaking a resettlement plan and by acquiring the land necessary for the projects, it said.
The committee pointed out that land outside the mine area, which has subsided and will subside in future, should be acquired by paying premium to the owners. The base line survey should identify the lands that could be acquired by paying the premium.
It recommended jobs for the locals as per their merit in the Barapukuria coalmine. A social awareness committee should be formed with these people to disseminate information about the long-term impact of the mine.
The 2,500-acre underground mine area includes 650 acres of agricultural land on the surface. The mine is directly affecting the lives of about 2,500 people in seven to eight villages. “Rehabilitation of these people should not be very costly for the government,” said a source.
Other members of the committee include director general of the Hydrocarbon Cell of the ministry, Dhaka University geology department Professor Badrul Imam, chiefs of the Bureau of Mineral Development, Barapukuria Coal Mine Company, Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company and Geological Survey of Bangladesh.

Source: The Daily Star, Bangladesh

Link: http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=89132
Date: 21 May 2009

No more waiting for policy-Govt to set-up coal-fired power plant: Muhith

ET Report

The government is determined to set up coal-fired power plants to meet power demands and will wait no more for formulation of a national coal policy.
Finance Minister AMA Muhith said power generated from on-stream together with projects in the pipeline would not be enough to meet demand.
“So, we are mulling over new coal-fired power projects whether coal policy is formulated or not.” Industries minister Dilip Barua said investors were not coming forward due to many obstacles-power and gas and water scarcity, weak infrastructure, high interest rates, and complex tax and investment regulations, among others.
There was no alternative to removing these hindrances for domestic industries to flourish, he said. The ministers were delivering speeches at a seminar.

Source: Weekly Economic Times , Bangladesh

Link : http://www.weeklyeconomictimes.com/home-news-details.php?recordID=3721
Date: 30 April 2009

Coal policy, now a necessity-Minister says

Star Business Report

The government will finalise the much-awaited coal policy, to mitigate the acute power crisis, said the state minister for energy and mineral resources yesterday.
“There is no alternative to finalising the coal policy, as to prove to be a lower cost option for power generation,” said Shamsul Haque Tuku at a meeting with the Forum for Energy Reporters Bangladesh.
He however did not reveal the present status of the policy, which has been under deliberation within the government for the last few years. But the policy, which is required to develop the coal sector, is still in red tape.
The last caretaker government finalised the draft coal policy. But that government did not impose it, as it thought a political government should take such a decision.
The state minister said new gas and coalmines must be excavated.
He urged all stakeholders of the mineral resources sector to suggest the government how national resources should be used.
The state minister claimed the present government increased day-to-day electricity generation from 3200 MW in January to 3850 MW till yesterday. However, the last caretaker government increased electricity generation to 3900 MW in December 2008.
In response to a query, the minister said the present government is trying to add more than 741 MW electricity by July this year, based on the last caretaker government’s load management policy.
He said the present government is not responsible for the current power crisis. But the current government will not consider what happened in the past, he added.
“We will have to develop the power sector. Otherwise, the government will be blamed for the power shortage. That is what the past government faced,” Tuku said.

Source: The Daily Star, Bangladesh
Link: http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=82375
Date: 02 April 2009

Develop Phulbari coal mine to resolve power crisis

Chamber leaders urge govtUnb, Dhaka


Business leaders of different chamber bodies of northern districts at a discussion at a city hotel yesterday urged the government to move to develop the Phulbari coal mine without any further delay. They saw the huge coal reserve at the Phulbari coal mine as the only option now to deal with future energy crisis, particularly in power generation.
“We can easily produce 3,500MW of electricity from the coal to be extracted from the Phulbari mine,” said Rangpur Chamber President Mostafa Azad Chowdhury, adding that as the country’s gas reserve is depleting fast, coal is becoming the only option for power generation. Greater Rangpur-Dinajpur Industry-Business Development Forum organised the discussion on ‘Industrialisation in Rangpur-Dinajpur: Energy availability’ at Sheraton Hotel with President of the forum Nazrul Islam in the chair.
Former PDB member Fazlul Haque presented a keynote paper on the topic. Former lawmakers Mizanur Rahman Manu and Asaduzzaman Noor, leaders of eight chambers of the northern districts — Rajshahi, Dinajpur, Rangpur, Lalmonirhat, Nilphamari, Gaibandha, Panchaghar and Joypurhat — also spoke at the function.
The speakers, supporting the open pit mining at Phulbari coal mine as it provides more than 80 percent extraction of resources, urged the government to ensure proper compensation to those who would be affected by the development of the mine. “The authorities concerned have to ensure that the affected people would be properly compensated and rehabilitated,” said former LGED chief engineer Monwar Hossain Chowdhury. If the government fails to take the decision in proper time to extract coal from Phulbari mine, Bangladesh might lose the opportunity to use its coal, as there might be a bar on coal extraction worldwide in future, he added.
Former BGMEA president Tipu Munshi expressed his frustration over the poor attention of the government to the development of mineral resources of the northern region. He further said the people of the northern region should not be deprived of coal resources due to the antipathy by a section of people. Forum leader MA Majid termed the opposition to coal extraction in Phulbari an international conspiracy.
Editor of the Bangladesh Observer Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury suggested that those who oppose open pit mining and those support open pit should sit together to reach a consensus through a logical debate.

The Daily Star, Bangladesh
Date: 27/08/08
Link: http://thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=52084

Charting The Way Forward

Professor Ajoy K. Ghose

There is no dearth of debates on whether on not Bangladesh faces an energy crisis of a monumental dimension. It is increasingly becoming apparent however that unless some drastic policy decisions are taken right now, the energy dilemma will exacerbate to a level that will be beyond the control of the nation. Bangladesh’s energy landscape presents some ominous indicators. Gas, which had thus far been the mainstay of the nation’s energy base is, by all accounts, being rapidly depleted and unless the nation strikes it rich with new discoveries in its offshore fields, the energy future appears to be dark and dismal. The recently discovered coal resources in northwest Bangladesh are mired in controversy and organized opposition by civil society is setting up major roadblocks to coal development with the coal policy gathering dust in the files of the government. As energy is the very life blood of a nation, ensuring secure, reliable, affordable supplies of energy is a serious concern for Bangladesh, even though the energy use is very low with a per capita primary energy supply of 0.16 toe/capita(2004 data), possibly the lowest in the region. While traditional biomass meets some 50% of the total energy requirements, especially in rural Bangladesh, this is contributing to large-scale deforestation, besides serious impacts on the health of rural population because of indoor air pollution. Clearly, the dependence on traditional fuels and inefficient technologies, militate against the vision of the Bangladesh Government to provide for “electricity for all” by 2020. Even the per capita electricity consumption at 167 kWh/year falls short of the necessary stimulus required to attain a GDP growth rate of 6-7%.
Energy availability will be central to the development agenda of Bangladesh, as the catalyst for change for a better future. There are serious concerns about the security of energy supplies, investment in energy infrastructure and rising aspirations of the people with energy use continuing to grow inexorably. Even if there are no quick fixes, a road map for the nation’s energy future has to be drawn up and translated into reality if only to kick start the national economy and ward off potential political and social instability. Energy Landscape of Bangladesh The energy landscape of Bangladesh is a variegated one where biomass fuels account for 52% of the energy consumption. Of the commercial energy resources, natural gas has a dominant share, besides minor contributions from hydro, oil and coal and very limited share of renewables. Natural gas consuming sectors include the power sector, the fertilizer industry, domestic, captive power and transport and the demand has increased manifold over the years. Despite the myth that Bangladesh is “floating over gas”, the prospectivity for striking more gas deposits is high. According to World Energy Congress Survey of 2004, the proved recoverable reserves are estimated at 301 billion cubic metres and the R/P ratio is estimated at some 26 years. With rapidly escalating demand for gas, the reserves are fast depleting and the nation faces a resource crunch, unless new discoveries are made in gas fields. As much of Bangladesh is poorly explored, both off-shore and on-shore, the potential for further discoveries is thought to be substantial and a windfall of a few new deposits of the size of Titas or Habiganj could help ameliorate the energy resource crunch. This calls for extensive exploration efforts with matching investments and recourse to high technology.
The total installed capacity of power plants in 2005-2006 was 5245 MW, and the maximum demand was 3782 MW. The aggregate generation was 23,703 MkWh, of which the share of gas was 81.5%, hydro 4.3%, furnace oil 5.3%, diesel 4.07% and coal 4.74%. The access to electrical energy was only around 42%, despite the targeted 100 per cent electrification of all 84,000 villages in the country.The discovery of coal in northwest Bangladesh in 1960’s has opened up a new energy source which could provide a boost, if not a reinforcement, to the energy scenario of the country .This marks in fact a major milestone in sustainable energy development, given appropriate policy support. Five major coal deposits have been delineated in the recent past which include Jamalganj, Barapukuria, Khalaspir, Phulbari and Dighipara with an aggregate resource base of 3300 million tonnes, of which Phulbari and Barapukuria have been explored in detail with reserves estimated at 572 million tonnes and 303 million tonnes respectively. Developed with Chinese assistance, Barapukuria coal mine commenced production in Sepotember, 2005. The choice of underground method of exploitation has been fraught with serious consequences; the recovery is low and the bulk production has fallen short of the planned target production of 1million tonnes per year. The coal deposits discovered so far in Bangladesh are characterized by a sequence of 6 or 7 seams, some of which are thick to very thick.
The coal seams are overlain by Upper and Lower Dupi Tila formations which are highly water-bearing aquifers which pose serious problems of dewatering. At Barapukuria, a water inrush in 1996 led to significant sterilization of coal reserves. Currently, Barapukuria is producing around 0.3 to 0.4 million tonnes /year, but the recovery will not exceed 10% of the aggregate proven reserves. It is time to re-think the exploitation strategy and convert the underground operations to an open pit operation which besides improving recovery, safety and lowering cost of production would also permit of high production volume. The Phulbari coal deposit has been planned for exploitation by an open pit mine, with an ultimate pit depth of 330 m, for a production volume of 15Million tonnes per year. The project has encountered severe opposition from the civil society on the grounds of possible impacts on groundwater resources in the region, the problems of displacement of project affected people and likely damage to valuable agricultural land.
Much of the opposition is grounded on imaginary/unreal arguments; the displacement of the people would certainly call for a sensitive handling of the situation with a well-conceived R & R plan, providing for fair compensation and resettlement entitlements, training and provision of jobs for “locals” and building up appropriate social infrastructure for the people. The feasibility report of the Phulbari project has been submitted to the Government and is awaiting approval; the project has already received appropriate environmental clearances.
Both Khalaspir and Dighipara coal deposits need to be explored in depth to justify the mining plans. It should be possible to work them by open pit method to circumvent the problems likely with underground exploitation under aquifers. It would be in the interest of Bangladesh to examine the prospects of these deposits by open pit exploitation using the current shelf of strategies and state-of-the-art knowledge around the world and the Government would be well advised to set up a committee of experts rather than having the issues discussed and debated endlessly by civil society, who are oftentimes very ill-informed of coal mining technology per se.
The coal deposit at Jamalganj is a deep-seated one, with depth varying between 640 to 1160 m, and could be an ideal candidate for underground exploitation. However, keeping in view the escalating costs of underground mining from depth, lack of precedent experience in Bangladesh, one could conceive of different strategies for recovering the heat content of the coal seams such as recourse to underground coal gasification (UCG) at Jamalganj.
The coal resources of Bangladesh open up a new window of opportunity for staving off the energy crisis in the foreseeable future. The coal seams are of high quality and will provide fuel for thermal power plants to meet the crying need for electricity. One could even conceive of conversion of coal to liquids using such coals, keeping in view the skyrocketing oil prices, which could touch $150 per barrel within 2008 itself.
A well-conceived sustainable coal development plan for Bangladesh needs to be worked out identifying the share of coal in the national energy mix. It should be possible to accelerate coal development through joint ventures for Khalaspir and Dighipara and approving the feasibility report for Phulbari. By 2015, Phulbari could produce 12-15 million tonnes per year, while Barapukuria(if converted to an open pit operation) and Khalaspir and Dighipara augment the coal production by 5 million tonnes. Thermal power generation, given appropriate investments, should be possible for a capacity of 3000MW, using 9 million tonnes of high quality coal from Phulbari, and Barapukuria.
The focus on power generation for the urban sector has led to a neglect of distributed generation, especially of renewables. If the vision of 2020 has to be met, the rural sector must receive a higher priority.
Sustainable Energy Development – The Way ForwardBangladesh faces a daunting challenge in meeting her “energy hunger”, and overcoming the glaring rural-urban disparity in terms of access to energy. By 2020, the vision of “electricity for all” has to be realized and the per capita electricity consumption has to be raised to at least 750 kWh per year, if only to lift the nation by the bootstrap out of energy deprivation for a new economic future. With the skewed diversion of investments and human resources to urban energy supplies, the rural sector has been ignored and the situation can only be corrected by massive increase in the national power generation capacity and focus on accelerated rural electrification. Much of the new generation capacity could be based on coal, if the road blocks to coal development are lifted. The investment in power generation could be partly offset by exporting coal. The exploitation of coal in Bangladesh would herald the beginning of new energy and economic era and deserves the support of the Government in full

Energy & Power
16/06/08
Link:http://www.ep-bd.com/