Effective Solar Photovoltaic Activities in Bangladesh

Abstract

The amount of nonrenewable energy resources of Bangladesh is very limited. The country is facing acute energy crisis and serious desertification problem in rural areas. This problem can be solved by using renewable energy as a primary source of energy in rural areas. Bangladesh is endowed with vast solar insolation and receives an average daily solar radiation of 4-6.5 kWh/m². Solar photovoltaic (PV) are receiving interest for providing electricity to households and small business enterprises in off-grid rural areas. Activities on the development and promotion of solar energy technologies have been going on for one decade have led to a start of large scale utilization of solar PV systems. The development and trial of systems are mostly funded so far by donor agencies in collaboration with government and non-government organizations (NGOs). This paper reviews effective solar PV activities in Bangladesh in terms of its implementation, research and development. More than 170,000 Solar Home Systems (SHSs) of a total capacity around 8.67 MWp, 12 centralized AC power supply and 11 solar water pumping system installed so far in off-grid rural, hill tracks and coastal areas in Bangladesh have been considered for assessment.