Minister calls for NGO role in expanding rooftop solar

Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Iqbal Hasan Mahmud has urged non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to help expand the country's net metering system to accelerate the adoption of renewable energy and rooftop solar power.

Speaking at the National Workshop on Voice of Development in Dhaka, he said the government is prioritising renewable energy to ease the energy crisis and reduce pressure on foreign exchange reserves.

The minister said the government had approved a new solar policy and set a target of generating 10,000MW of solar power during its current term.

Achieving the target would reduce the need for an equivalent amount of energy imports, allowing the savings to be redirected to other development sectors, he said.

Iqbal Hasan Mahmud said the solar programme would be implemented through cluster-based projects and rooftop net metering, enabling consumers to sell surplus electricity to the national grid.