Highlights:
- WB team to discuss Bangladesh’s energy security and infrastructure reforms
- Four-member delegation led by Pankaj Gupta visiting 3–7 Oct
- Talks to cover fuel import financing, supply security and renewable energy
- Bangladesh faces mounting pressure from high fuel import costs and forex constraints
- WB’s LNG financing for Bangladesh has reached $700m
- Bay Terminal and Dhaka-Chattogram logistics corridor investment to be discussed
- Railway, water transport, urban development and climate resilience also on agenda
A high-level World Bank delegation is visiting Bangladesh to discuss the country’s ongoing energy challenges, energy security and infrastructure reforms with the government, as Dhaka faces growing financial pressure from fuel imports and volatile global energy prices.
The four-member delegation, led by Pankaj Gupta, World Bank’s regional director of South Asia Infrastructure, arrived in Dhaka today (3 October) and will hold meetings with relevant ministries and agencies until 7 October.
During the visit, the delegation will discuss policy issues surrounding the power and energy sector, financing for fuel imports, energy supply security, renewable energy, sectoral reforms, private investment and institutional capacity building.
Gayle H Martin, operations manager at the World Bank’s Dhaka office, informed Md Ahsan Kibria Siddiqui, additional secretary at the Economic Relations Division (ERD), about the visit in a letter.
According to the letter, one of the key objectives of the visit is to discuss strategies to ensure affordable, reliable and sustainable energy supplies in Bangladesh. The delegation will also review the progress of ongoing World Bank-financed energy projects and discuss projects in the pipeline.
The visit comes as Bangladesh faces mounting pressure from volatile global energy prices, foreign exchange constraints and high import bills. The country relies heavily on imported liquefied natural gas (LNG), fuel oil and coal to meet electricity generation and industrial demand.
The World Bank has also noted that Bangladesh’s reliance on imported LNG has exposed the country to global fuel-market volatility and pressure on foreign exchange reserves and public finances.
Petrobangla has been under significant financial pressure because of the high cost of LNG imports. Although the government has undertaken fresh gas exploration and production initiatives, managing the cost of imported LNG remains a major challenge.
The Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) is facing similar pressure in the petroleum sector.
According to BPC officials, the corporation incurred losses of around Tk22,876 crore between March and August this year as international fuel prices and transportation costs rose. The government has also provided BPC with a Tk4,500 crore loan to meet fuel import costs and maintain uninterrupted supplies.
Bangladesh has already received substantial World Bank support to finance LNG imports. In May this year, the World Bank approved an additional $350 million under its Energy Sector Security Enhancement Project to help Petrobangla secure LNG supplies through more cost-effective financing mechanisms and reduce reliance on expensive spot-market purchases. This followed the original $350 million project approved in June 2025, taking the World Bank’s financing under the project to $700 million.
The additional financing is backed by an International Development Association payment guarantee and is intended to support payment security for LNG imports through standby letters of credit and short-term credit lines. The World Bank said the financing would help Bangladesh move towards more predictable, longer-term LNG procurement arrangements.
The delegation is also expected to discuss the progress and future financing of World Bank-supported energy projects, including initiatives related to renewable energy and institutional capacity building.
Bangladesh has been pursuing measures to strengthen energy security by expanding renewable energy, accelerating gas exploration and production, and moving towards market-based energy pricing.
The World Bank has long supported Bangladesh’s renewable energy sector through financing and technical assistance. Its projects include the Scaling-up Renewable Energy Project, under which a 75MW grid-connected solar power plant was developed in Sonagazi, Feni, as well as support for rooftop solar and rural renewable energy projects through the Infrastructure Development Company Limited (IDCOL).
The discussions will extend beyond the energy sector to major transport infrastructure and urban development projects. The delegation is expected to discuss increased World Bank investment in Chattogram’s Bay Terminal development project and the Dhaka-Chattogram Logistics and Transport Corridor, one of the country’s key economic corridors.
The delegation will also review progress on railway infrastructure development and strategic planning, inland water transport infrastructure, sustainable urban development and measures to strengthen cities’ resilience to climate change.
Land management reforms, institutional capacity building in local government and various water resources management initiatives will also feature in the discussions.
According to the letter, the World Bank delegation will meet senior officials from the Ministry of Finance; Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources; Ministry of Road Transport and Bridges; Ministry of Railways; Ministry of Shipping; Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Co-operatives; Ministry of Water Resources; IDCOL and other government and private-sector institutions during the visit.
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