<div style="text-align: justify; "><b><span style="font-size: 1rem;">The extent of loadshedding crossed 1860 MW on Sunday, a new high in power shortage in at least a decade, on the heels of new record in power generation.</span><br></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The recent highest power generation in the country was recorded at 16,233 MW at 9pm on Monday last (April 22). But despite that loadshedding continued across the country, as the prevailing heatwave increases the demand for electricity.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The amount of loadshedding is the difference between the amount of electricity generated and its demand, when the former is in deficit.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The official data of the National Load Dispatch Centre (NLDC) at the Power Grid Company of Bangladesh (PGCB) shows that the loadshedding reached 1864 MW at 12 noon Sunday, the day’s peak for electricity demand&nbsp; amid the sweltering heat.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">However, rural level officials of different power utilities believe the extent of load shedding is far more than the official figure shown by NLDC as local interruptions in power supply don’t always come to the book.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“Power outages at the rural areas are so frequent that if any interruption takes place, consumers have to wait several hours to get electricity at both day and night,” an official of the Bangladesh Rural Electrification Board (BREB), told UNB.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">“The extent of loadshedding might even be more than 2000 MW if local outages are taken into account,” he added, requesting anonymity to speak as the issue is considered sensitive.&nbsp; &nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">According to official sources, the maximum burden of loadshedding was diverted to rural areas, as part of a policy to avert power outages in capital Dhaka, and other large cities.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Reports from different areas said the extent of load shedding is aggravating the plight of rural people amid the sweltering heat this summer.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The NLDC records also show power supply on Sunday started with 1,789 MW at 1am and then at one stage came down to 13019 MW at 7 am. But again it took a U-turn upwards and the extent of loadshedding was also increasing.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Officials apprehend, the extent of load shedding may go up further in the evening peak hours when normally demand goes up.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Both the data from the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) and PGCB show that the country's day’s demand forecast was set at 16,900 MW and evening demand at 15,500 MW.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Meanwhile, state-owned Petrobangla’s official data shows that the country’s gas production was 3,105 million cubic feet per day (MMCFD) against a demand for about 4000 MMCFD.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">It shows that a good number of power plants, specifically those using gas as their primary fuel, remained off generation due to gas shortage.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The power plants received a supply of 1423 MMCFD gas against their demand for 2316.9 MMCFD, the data shows. - UNB</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">bnbd/fas</div>