1. Overview
The total energy supply (TES) to the country was 46,400 ktoe while the final energy consumption (FEC) was 35,744 ktoe. Non-energy consumption was 1,141 ktoe, and the statistical difference was minus 761 ktoe. Transformation loss, energy industry own use, with the transmission and distribution loss altogether accounted for 10,276 ktoe. Bangladesh’s FEC / TES ratio for FY 2017-18 is 0.77.
Bangladesh’s national energy balance structure can be categorised by (i) dominance of its indigenous natural gas, (ii) significant importance of biofuel, and (iii) large dependency on captive power generation (auto producers). These characteristics of the national energy balance structure of Bangladesh can be visualised in the form of the energy balance table figure as shown below:
2. Total Energy Supply (TES)
The total energy supply (TES) of 46,400 ktoe is composed of 23,014 ktoe of natural gas, and 13,600 ktoe of biofuel as the major energy products. The biofuel is the fuelwood mostly supplied to residential sector for cooking and heating purposes, where city gas is not made available. Domestic production of energy which comprises 37,834 ktoe among the TES is also mostly composed of natural gas and biofuel. Import is 9,084 ktoe among which 5,782 ktoe is petroleum products, 1,197 ktoe is crude oil, 1,694 ktoe is coal, and 411 ktoe is electricity import.
Self-sufficiency rate (domestic production / total energy supply) of Bangladesh’s TES is 82%, which is calculated from the sum of the indigenous supply of 37,834 ktoe, among the TES of 46,400 ktoe.
Biofuel comprising 29% of the total energy supply is a significant contributor to Bangladesh’s energy, however, it is an energy product which is neither regulated nor reported. It is also for this reason that the credibility of the biofuel data is not endorsed.
With the aim to identify the trends and efficiency of the controllable energy products utilisation, the analysis hereon are conducted under two setups: one setup being all energy products, and another setup, by excluding biofuel from the national energy balance table.
3. Transformation and Losses
Three major energy transformation means in Bangladesh are thermal electric power generation, captive power generation, and oil refinery. Each transformation deliver 4,891 ktoe, 1,335 ktoe, and 1,073 ktoe, respectively. Although smaller in scale, there are indigenous condensate and natural gas liquid (NGL) fractionation plants which produce 153 ktoe of petroleum products.
Overall transformation efficiency of thermal electric power generation (gross) is calculated as approximately 42%. Considering the public power plants’ own use which is reported as 123 ktoe, and the national grid’s transmission & distribution loss which amounts to 208 ktoe, the overall efficiency of generation, transmission, and distribution of the grid electricity becomes approximately 39%. Similarly, the transformation efficiency of oil refinery and fractionation plants combined is approximately 89%. Captive power generation efficiency is assumed to be 35%. In overall, all the losses reported add up to 10,276 ktoe.
4. Final Energy Consumption (FEC) by Energy Product
Biofuel (fuelwood), comprising 38% of the final energy consumption (FEC) is the largest energy product being consumed in Bangladesh. It amounts to 13,600 ktoe. When excluding biofuel from the analysis, natural gas becomes the largest composition of final energy consumption (9,024 ktoe), followed by electricity of 6,074 ktoe. Petroleum product final consumption is 5,216 ktoe, while coal final consumption is 1,831 ktoe.
5. Final Energy Consumption (FEC) by Sector
Sectoral breakdown of Bangladesh’s final energy consumption (FEC) of 35,744 ktoe is as shown in the charts below. Looking at at the FEC of all energy products, the largest energy consuming sector, 20,494 ktoe is the residential sector. Entire biofuel is being consumed by this sector. When biofuel is excluded, Industry sector becomes the top energy consuming sector at 8,994 ktoe, followed by residential sector consuming 6,894 (=20,494-13,600) ktoe. Transport sector consumes 4,293 ktoe, followed by 1,179 ktoe consumption by agriculture sector. Commercial and public service sector sector energy consumption is still limited to 783 ktoe.
6. Primary Energy Basis Final Energy Consumption
For the final consumption of 1 toe equivalent (=11.63 MWh) of electricity, there is a need for an input of 2.55 toe (=29.66 MWh) equivalent of primary energy. This is because the overall electricity transformation efficiency for FY 2017-18 was calculated to be approximately 39% (including grid and captive). Similarly, the final consumption of 1 toe equivalent of petroleum product requires 1.12 toe of primary energy input, because the overall transformation efficiency of petroleum product for FY 2017-18 was calculated as 89%. Such measurement of primary energy required for the final consumption is hereby termed as the “final energy consumption on primary energy basis” or “primary energy basis final energy consumption.
Primary energy basis final energy consumption enables the fair comparison between the energy utilised in the various forms of energy products, from the viewpoint of energy supply to the country. It is therefore necessary to observe the final energy consumption on primary energy basis when analysing the final energy consumption data from national perspective.
Primary energy basis final energy consumption for natural gas, coal, and biofuel are deemed to be same as the final energy consumption as sufficient data on the transformation and distribution efficiency could not be obtained.
The final energy consumption, which was calculated as 35,744 ktoe becomes 45,812 ktoe on primary energy basis. Electricity comprises 34% of the total at 15,491 ktoe, followed by 13,600 ktoe of biofuel which is 29% of the final energy consumption on primary energy basis. Natural gas comprises 20% at 9,024 ktoe, and petroleum products, 13% at 5,866 ktoe.
When excluding biofuel, the final energy consumption on primary energy basis becomes 32,212 (45,812-13,600) ktoe among which approximately a half (48%) is the electricity consumption at 15,491 ktoe. Next come natural gas at 9,024 ktoe (28%), petroleum products at 5,866 (18%), and coal at 1,831 ktoe (6%).
Primary energy basis final energy consumption by sector is shown in the following charts. Residential sector takes up 53% of the entire amount, with industry sector comprising 30% and transport sector 10%. When excluding the biofuels, industry sector becomes the dominant sector (42%), followed by residential sector (34%) and then, transport sector (14%).
With respect to the importance of the primary energy basis final energy consumption analysis, breakdown charts (all energy products on the left, excluding biofuel on the right) have been prepared. Focusing on mostly fossil fuel derived energy (i.e., excluding biofuels), it is observed that the industry sector electricity consumption, together with the residential sector electricity consumption are the large sector-product segments. As the consequence, energy efficiency and conservation potentials are most likely to be significant in these two segments.
7. National Energy Intensity
Energy intensity is measured by the quantity of energy required per unit output or activity, so that using less energy to produce a product reduces the intensity. (US DOE definition). National energy intensity of Bangladesh is calculated with the total energy supply (or final energy consumption) divided by constant gross domestic product (GDP) for the fiscal year. The constant market price GDP used is the FY 2015-16 price data in BDT.
Two kinds of national energy intensity are calculated for Bangladesh. One is the total energy supply divided by GDP (=TES/GDP) which is commonly employed as the national indicator internationally, and the other is the final energy consumption divided by GDP (=FEC/GDP) which may better reflect the energy efficiency of the activities conducted within the country.
For FY 2017-18 (FY 2015-16 price in BDT), TES/GDP is 1.95 [ktoe / BDT billion], while FEC/GDP is 1.51 [ktoe / BDT billion].
Explanatory notes for the national energy balance table calorific matrix can be found here: