Following the 2026 election, Bangladesh’s new government faces urgent tasks: restoring investor confidence, clearing policy bottlenecks, and accelerating renewable energy projects to put the country’s stalled energy transition back on track

As Bangladesh slowly advances towards clean and sustainable energy, the transition is not only about cutting carbon emissions. It is also about exploring new avenues for job creation, economic growth, and a fairer and more equal society. And for this to be successful, women must be at the centre of it.

Can electricity tariffs be kept at their current level for the next two years? The question has arisen after the newly formed Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) government signalled that it does not wish to increase power prices during that period.

The newly elected government’s Power Minister, Iqbal Hasan Mahmud Tuku, and State Minister Anindya Islam Amit held a meeting on Sunday with senior officials from electricity generation, distribution and transmission companies.

Energy insecurity in Bangladesh isn’t just a global problem. Policy design — not world fuel prices — drives high costs, supply risks, and industrial strain

Bangladesh's energy insecurity and high electricity costs are often explained as consequences of global fuel prices, foreign exchange shortages, or capacity payments. While these factors matter, they obscure a more uncomfortable truth: a significant part of our vulnerability is self-inflicted through policy design.

The government is planning a fresh round of bidding for both onshore and offshore gas exploration, with the finalisation of model Production Sharing Contracts (PSCs) targeted within its first 100 days in office.

It aims to complete the bidding process this year and sign final agreements by 2027, officials said.

Petrobangla is now in a position to launch an offshore bidding round under the newly elected government led by BNP after the Ministry of Law vetted the draft Offshore Model Production Sharing Contract (MPSC) 2026.

This introduces major reforms in gas pricing, pipeline cost recovery and work obligations aimed at attracting international oil companies (IOCs).

Local independent power producers (IPPs) are owed between Tk13,000 crore and Tk14,000 crore by the government. When joint-venture plants are included, total outstanding dues could exceed Tk25,000 crore, according to the Bangladesh Independent Power Producers’ Association

A roundtable titled “Just Energy Transition: Implications on the Political Landscape of Bangladesh” was held on 20 January 2026, at The Daily Star Centre, Dhaka. Jointly organised by The Daily Star, Coastal Livelihood and Environment Action Network (CLEAN) and other CSOs, the dialogue brought together representatives from notable political parties, CSOs, and NGOs. The Roundtable aimed to deliberate on the 13 Point Citizens’ Demands to political parties ahead of the 13th National Elections regarding the Just Energy Transition.

The deal also includes $3.5b worth of agricultural items, Boeing jets from Washington

Bangladesh will purchase $3.5 billion of US agricultural products and $15 billion of energy products over 15 years, as part of a broader reciprocal trade agreement with Washington signed yesterday.

BPDB's annual losses have exploded from Tk5,468 crore in FY15 to Tk50,565 crore in FY25, nearly a tenfold increase in a decade.

Bangladesh's power sector has always been ambitious. It wanted to grow fast, build big, and finally silence the old jokes about load-shedding. In one sense, it succeeded: the country now has more installed capacity than it knows what to do with. In another sense, it has created a financial crisis so large that even the most creative accounting cannot hide it.

AS BANGLADESH marks the International Day of Clean Energy this January, the observance arrives at a moment of unusual historical weight. In November this year, the country is set to graduate from the United Nations’ list of Least Developed Countries. This transition is widely framed as a marker of success — a recognition of economic growth, improved infrastructure and rising industrial capacity. Yet the symbolism of graduation sits uneasily beside a less comfortable reality: Bangladesh is entering its post-LDC era just as the global energy system undergoes its most disruptive transformation in a century.

The committee, however, has stopped short of recommending immediate action, leaving the final decision to the next elected government.

The National Review Committee examining power contracts signed under the 2010 special act has recommended that Bangladesh either renegotiate the coal pricing formula with Adani Power Limited (APL) or move to cancel the agreement if the Indian company refuses to revisit the terms.

On January 7, 2026, the Interim Government's Advisor for the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Muhammad Fauzul Kabir Khan submitted to the Chief Adviser Prof. Muhammad Yunus a new 25-year power and energy sector master plan to be implemented during 2026-2050. As reported, the master plan would be implemented in three phases: 2026-2030, 2030-2040 and 2040-2050.The Master Plan projected country's peak electricity demand of 59,000 megawatts by 2050 (current electricity demand considered to be 16,700 MW).

The power sector’s high reserve margin, capacity payment obligations, and reliance on imported fossil fuels have weakened the Bangladesh Power Development Board’s (BPDB) financial strength. In a bid to urgently address its distress, the interim government, after assuming office in August 2024, undertook some measures to reduce costs. Yet, the power sector registered a record revenue shortfall in FY2024-25, calling for long-term efforts to deliver results. With the general election scheduled for February 12, 2026, the next government will be well-placed to design and implement long-term reforms to steer the power sector towards sustainability, while ensuring that the country’s economic growth trajectory remains intact.

In a coastal village in Cox’s Bazar, steel towers now rise where fishermen once cast their nets. The wind that used to whip across the salt-stung plains without notice is now captured, spinning giant blades that generate electricity and promise a cleaner future. Bangladesh, long reliant on fossil fuels and foreign energy imports, is finally beginning to turn the tide.