Energy crisis needs time to resolve: Commerce minister

Commerce and Industry Minister Khandakar Abdul Muktadir today (15 August) said Bangladesh needs time to overcome its ongoing energy crisis, as the government works to expand infrastructure and increase fuel supplies.

“The challenge of the energy crisis is clear. We have to give it as much time as necessary to build the infrastructure required to overcome the situation,” he told reporters after a district-level workshop on agricultural development in Sylhet.

The minister said increasing the capacity of fuel terminals and drilling new gas wells would help improve the country’s energy self-sufficiency. “We need two years in this regard,” he said.

Muktadir said current daily demand for fuel was roughly twice the available supply, while demand typically rises during this period of the year, making the shortage more visible.

He said ensuring a stable energy supply was essential for attracting investment and sustaining economic growth.

“The government is working to normalise the energy situation. We are also trying to import LNG from Malaysia,” he said.

Speaking about agriculture, Muktadir said the government’s next target was to ensure greater returns from farming by fully tapping the sector’s potential.

He later inaugurated a divisional tree fair organised by the Forest Department at the Sylhet Government Alia Madrasah field in Sylhet city.