<div style="text-align: justify; "><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid on Tuesday said power tariff will go up with effect from March 1.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The power tariff might increase between Tk 0.34 and Tk 0.70 per unit, he said while talking to reporters at his office in the Power and Energy Ministry.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">This step is being taken as part of the government move to come out of the subsidy now being given to the power sector, said the minister.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">He also indicated that there might be an adjustment in the gas price as well keeping consistency with price in the international market.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The government last increased the electricity tariff in March last year.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">According to the BPDB’s Annual Report 2022-23, the fiscal year saw the production of 87,024 million kilowatt hours of electricity at a total cost of TK 98,646 crore.&nbsp; &nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Its per unit production cost was Tk 11.33, while it was selling electricity at Tk 6.7 per unit — incurring a loss of about Tk 4.63 per unit.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">This imbalance has led to a staggering loss of Tk 47,788 crore for the fiscal year, as the government grapples with purchasing power from private and international sources at significantly higher rates.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">With this huge loss, the government has been facing great trouble as it has to purchase electricity worth Tk 82,778 crore from private sector power producers, while it generates electricity worth Tk 13,307 crore from its own generation plants.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Building Climate Resilient Livelihoods project launched with inception workshop</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The annual report also shows that the BPDB’s average per unit production cost from its own plants is Tk 7.63, while it is Tk 14.62 at the independent power producers or IPPs (private sector), at rental plants Tk 12.53, at public plants Tk 6.85, and imported power from India at Tk 8.77.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The government purchases electricity from the private sector and India in dollars. UNB</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">bnbd24/kh</div>