Country’s 1st solar panel assembling plant opens

The first-ever solar panel assembling plant in the country was launched in Savar yesterday to make solar panels available on the local market at a competitive price.

Solar panels, assembled at the plant, are expected to hit the market in a month.

The plant set up by local company Electro Solar Power Ltd (ESPL) is capable of assembling solar panels with a production capacity of 10-megawatt electricity a year, said company officials.

Prime Minister’s Adviser on energy affairs Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury inaugurated the plant at Ashulia in Savar. Syed Manzur Elahi, former adviser to a caretaker government, was also present there.

“It’s a positive initiative. Such ventures will facilitate the country’s economic development,” said Tawfiq.

He said the ESPL’s initiative would support the government’s goal of meeting a part of the electricity demand through green energy.

The government aims to meet 5 percent of the country’s energy demand through green energy by 2015 and 10 percent by 2020.

The government decided to install solar systems in government buildings, he said.

“We hope that there will be no problem in marketing locally-assembled solar panels,” Tawfiq said.

ESPL, a sister concern of Electro Group, was established in 2009. The company will import solar cells and other accessories, and assemble them, said its officials.

The plant has the capacity to assemble solar charger, battery and other accessories for solar home systems.

Ansar Uddin, managing director of ESPL, said they hope that their initiative would help ease the ongoing power crisis a bit

• Saturday, May 1, 2010 06:30 AM GMT+06:00 (6 days ago)A very good move towards right direction.Congratulations to the initiators.Business communiuty of Comilla & Ctg may come forward with such plan.
• SM Zobaidul Kabir
  Saturday, May 1, 2010 08:26 AM GMT+06:00 (6 days ago)This is a good initiative. Hope the price of solar power till be reduced and every family will be able to use it successfully.

  Zobaidul, PhD studnet ( Environment), Australia

• Dr.Habib Khondker
  Saturday, May 1, 2010 10:19 AM GMT+06:00 (6 days ago)We want to see more such initiatives now. Renewable energy is our future.
• baz
  Saturday, May 1, 2010 10:35 AM GMT+06:00 (6 days ago)Why not made in Bangladesh, instead of assembled in Bangladesh. Now those technologies are available to made in 100% in Bangladesh.
• Abdul Ghani
  Saturday, May 1, 2010 12:21 PM GMT+06:00 (6 days ago)Assembling is not any big game.
• iftekhar, chowdhury.
  Saturday, May 1, 2010 01:46 PM GMT+06:00 (6 days ago)It is good news to us .that 1st solar panel assembling in the country and local ESPl company is doing this jobs ,it is some relive to our in such power crisis,but people buy it in reasonable prices ,so i requested the company for the sake of the country and the people they fix the prices in low now ,govt doing some subsidiary for it . but please inform it the benefit ,and facilities of the solar power now ,ic computer operation ,how much light ,fan , then marketing .
• Abid A Ali
  Saturday, May 1, 2010 01:58 PM GMT+06:00 (6 days ago)ESPL’s innitiative is commandable. I welcome their venture and wish every sucess.

  I wish other enterprenuers also choose this area. This will help earn a good profit and same time serve the nation in most needed area.

• Shahed Kazi
  Saturday, May 1, 2010 04:53 PM GMT+06:00 (6 days ago)This is a great project. Hope it goes on well and meet the electricity demands to some extent.
• N.Khan
  Saturday, May 1, 2010 05:22 PM GMT+06:00 (6 days ago)The establishment of Plant depending on solar energy is surely a milestone for generation of power.Creation of such environment-friendly source of power was long overdue & the present Govt,thanks to the Adviser Mr.Elahi,has taken the right step.However,it should be made clear to the people at large by wide publicity how panels will be set up,whether such energy, generated during sunny days, can be stored for use during rainy season,how the cost is expected etc.There should be a series of seminars on all issues connected with the new theme of solar energy.People are still not clear about its manifold aspects.Could Daily Star/Prothom Alo take initiative in this respect! In the past,we have seen,those leading News Papers have played as role model on such public issues.
• Faiz Siddiqui, NJ
  Saturday, May 1, 2010 10:14 PM GMT+06:00 (6 days ago)Its a good news. May I know how much money is spent on the plant, how much value addtion is possible by assembling locally. A solar manufacturing plant is a billion dollar project i think. What about the plant to be made by Rahim Afrooz?
• Sibat-e-Mubeen
  Saturday, May 1, 2010 11:18 PM GMT+06:00 (6 days ago)It is a great move and a move towards right direction too. The country is in dire shortage of electricity and we need to take action on short term basis without any delay. RMG sector will be heavily affected and recovery of lost business will be too costly.

  While looking at short term solutions, we should not be sitting idle neglecting the prospect of long term economically viable coal fired steam turbine which is the cheapest source at present ($50 per MW). Boro-Pukuria coal mine and an immediate coal-policy is a must, or else it will be detrimental to country’s economical interest.

  Having said that, we should also look into the prospect of having Nuclear power generation using high breed reactors, which is also one of the cheapest source ($60 per MW) beside the coal fired source.

• Ahmed Badruzzaman
  Saturday, May 1, 2010 11:56 PM GMT+06:00 (6 days ago)This is a great development.
• 
  Sunday, May 2, 2010 06:04 AM GMT+06:00 (5 days ago)Very nice initiative
• 
  Sunday, May 2, 2010 07:51 AM GMT+06:00 (5 days ago)It has started in much smaller scale.If the cost is with in common man`s limit then the demand will be high.So cost benefit is a factor.It is not a luxurious product so 64 factories to be opened in 64 districts to reduce the power demand from national grid.
• Ferdous Jalil
  Sunday, May 2, 2010 08:58 AM GMT+06:00 (5 days ago)This is indeed a salient initiative on the part of local enterprise. I hope other credible enterprises will follow in the footstep to ensure quality and competition.

  Now that both batteries and solar panels are being manufactured, the third thing needed to be locally manufactured is inverter.

  Hopefully some company takes on that.

  Also hopefully in near future costs will come down from competition, along with increased quality.

  Not only government offices, apartments, gas stations, factories (wherever there is access to open sky) people should install solar panels.

  Keep going!

  Next phase: Wind turbines!

• Mansur
  Sunday, May 2, 2010 03:11 PM GMT+06:00 (5 days ago)That is a good news for urban people, But solar energy is costly for our country. If the plant reduce the cost of the system then it can helps a lot. Govt should allow subsidy to these types green energy scheme.

Bangladesh and South Korea will sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for cooperation in various areas including environment protection and forest conservation.

“The MoU is likely to be signed during visit of Prime Minister (PM) Sheikh Hasina to South Korea in May this year”.

State Minister for Environment and Forests Dr Hasan Mahmud said this after a meeting with his Korean Counterpart Dr Byung Wook in Indonesian tourist city Bali Friday, reports BSS.

The two leaders are in Bali now to attend the Governing Council meeting of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

The South Korean minister said his country had intended to sign the MoU on cooperation in the areas of environment during the PM’s visit.

He also said that his country was willing to provide training on environmental protection and forest conservation to Bangladesh officials.

Dr Wook sought support of Bangladesh in the bid to organise the Eighteenth Conference of Parties of UN Framework on Climate Change (COP-18) in Korea.

Dr Mahmud sought Korea’s help for development and promotion of solar energy in Bangladesh.

Earlier, the minister also held a meeting with UNEP Executive Secretary Achim Steiner.

Steiner praised Bangladesh’s initiatives to tackle climate change and for environmental protection.

He appreciated the role Bangladesh played in Copenhagen Climate Conference.

Dr Hasan Mahmud sought UNEP’s support to establish an international adaptation centre in Bangladesh.

As the Bangladesh minister requested UNEP to appoint a goodwill Ambassador of UNEP from Bangladesh during the next World Cup Cricket, the UNEP executive secretary said he would actively consider it.

Dr Mahmud also participated in the panel discussion on bio-diversity and ecosystem, where UK secretary of state for environment Hilary Benn, Nobel prize Winner Wangari Maathai, Australian minister for environment Piter Garrett, Japan’s minister for environment Sakihito Ozawa, Mexico’s minister for environment Juan Rafael Elvira, German federal minister for environment and nature conservation and nuclear safety Norbert Rottgen were present.

Hasan Mahmud said that climate change was not solely responsible for the loss of biodiversity. Over the last few decades more than 70 per cent of the globe’s land area had been altered mainly due to human activity, he added.