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BangladeshAt least 130 million inhabitants without electricity
A massive power outage hit Bangladesh on Tuesday morning. In total, more than 80% of the population is without power. The situation should be restored in the evening in the capital.
Bangladesh had already experienced a major power outage in November 2014. About 70% of the country was then without electricity for almost ten hours.
AFP
In Bangladesh, at least 130 million people – out of a total population of 160 million – were without power as of Tuesday afternoon following a grid failure that led to a blackout, the utility said. government electricity. The grid went down at 2 p.m. (10 a.m. in Switzerland), and except for parts of northwest Bangladesh, “the rest of the country is without power,” said Shamim Ahsan, spokesman for the Energy Development Board.
According to the spokesperson, the origin of this network failure is not yet known. “The investigation is still ongoing,” he said, adding that a technical failure could be the cause.
Mosques without air conditioning, except for prayers
According to a message from Zunaid Palak, Minister of Technology, posted on Facebook, electricity supply will be restored at 8 p.m. local time (4 p.m. in Switzerland) in Dhaka, the capital, which has 22 million inhabitants.
Bangladesh has been suffering for several months from a serious energy crisis due to the rise in world prices of fuel and gas, following the invasion of Ukraine by Russia. Struggling to finance the import of diesel and gas in sufficient quantity to meet the demand for electricity, Dhaka had to introduce “austerity measures”.
The country’s diesel power plants producing electricity, with a generating capacity of 1,500 megawatts, and some gas-fired power plants have been shut down. Tens of thousands of mosques across the country have been ordered to only run air conditioners during the five daily prayers. The shortages have been aggravated by the depreciation of the local currency, the taka – by around 20% against the dollar, according to economists – and the reduction in foreign exchange reserves.
Anger growls
The anger of the population intensified following numerous and long power cuts. At least three protesters were killed by security forces during large rallies in Dhaka against the rising cost of living. A hundred people were injured during a demonstration violently repressed by the police, according to the opposition party Bangladesh Nationalist Party.
Consumer price inflation has also hit household budgets hard, and the government has recently pledged to cap the price of several staple foods, including rice, to assuage public discontent.
Bangladesh had already experienced a major power outage in November 2014. About 70% of the country was then without electricity for almost ten hours.
(AFP)