::1 year of AL-led government::

The first year of the Awami League government gave the nation big dreams with promises of huge investment in power and infrastructure sectors for an energy-secured and well-connected Bangladesh by 2014. Unfortunately, most of these initiatives have not yet seen the urgency required for implementation within the deadline.

In the power sector alone, the government laid out a series of plans that demands at least $10 billion investment to bring about 7,000 megawatt of new power by 2014.

In addition, the government also reinitiated a 40-year-old plan to produce 1,000 MW more in nuclear energy by 2015-16 which requires at least another $2 billion.

Besides, the government has taken an initiative to install a Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminal on the coast to facilitate import of liquefied gas containers. The terminal is required to offload the import and transfer the gas to another facility from where it could be transmitted to the national grid.

This initiative has been taken as the country is already suffering from gas crisis and its gas-based power, fertiliser and industrial plants are suffering. The problem is set to intensify from 2011.

The will need another $1 billion for the launch of the LNG terminal.

To tap part of this huge fund requirement, the government for the first time has aimed at local banks which now have more than Tk 30,000 crore liquidity.

Policymakers and high officials have already sat with bankers to discuss lending formulas for the power sector. The policymakers have said they expect around 25 percent or $2.5 billion financing over the next five years in power sector from local banks.

For roads, bridges and other Emodes of infrastructure, the government laid out a number of plans involving no less than another $10 billion investment. These plans including metro rail in Dhaka, elevated expressway and the Padma bridge, if implemented, would revolutionise the capital's transportation system and speed up some major inter-district connections.

All of these would require around $20 billion investment. The government duly recognised that such huge investment needs intense involvement of the private sector with the public sector like never before. To do that, the government is already working on a public-private partnership policy.

Such huge initiatives also need elaborate preparation that includes fine-tuning of the procurement policy, modes of investment, packages for investors, motivation for financiers, local banks, tapping non-resident Bangladeshis, preparing tender documents and conducting tenders fairly and smoothly.

The government has repeatedly said it wants to implement most of these plans within its five-year tenure because it believes success in this regard will be the ticket to winning in the next elections.

The policymakers have also talked about a government goal on achieving "zero load-shedding" by the end of 2010.

But one year has already passed. Till now, the government has completed some preparations for its "dream works", but implementation process is clearly slow. It is also clear only a miracle can ensure "zero load-shedding" by the end of 2010.

For instance, tenders for several power projects including Bibiyana 450 MW or two 150 MW peaking power projects that were floated in April could not even complete half of the process due to technical incompetence of the tendering authorities and external influence to favour certain bidders.

If these tenders were floated by competent hands like in the past, the government could by now have awarded contracts for power projects so that they can generate power by 2012.

The previous Awami League government elected in 1996 demonstrated extraordinary success in the power sector to award private power contracts that added 1,300 MW to the national grid. The bid processes were by and large free of controversy and they all saw project implementation in due time.

But this time, not even the "fast-track" tender for awarding eight rental power projects saw seriousness.

Rental projects are supposed to be awarded to power companies that own power generators ready to be installed and de-installed anywhere in short notice. In benefit the government could have rental power within three-four months to ensure additional power supply in the next irrigation season in March-April.

This could contribute to the national agriculture production.

The downside is that rental power agreements allow higher tariff. Sensing higher profitability, a group of local businesspersons having zero experience in rental power projects put heavy pressure on policymakers to relax a tender clause so that they can take part.

The power board relaxed the criterion and the tender was left with low-price offers from companies that have no track records of doing this job.

Past experience shows those who had no track records failed to deliver rental projects even after one-year delay. Therefore, the government lost interest in this tender.

Right now, the government is struggling with power tenders against production of 2,600 MW. These include the shelved rental power projects for 530 MW, 810 MW worth of 10 public sector power projects, and several plants in Bibiyana, Khulna, Sirajganj, Haripur and elsewhere.

Except for the case of the 10 public sector power projects, all other tenders are running behind schedule for one reason or another.

But these initiatives are not all. The government sent a high-profile team to London in mid-December to hold a road show to attract investors for four coal-fired 2,000 MW power plants and four other power projects totalling another 1,100 MW capacity, plus an LNG terminal to facilitate import of liquefied gas in containers.

More road shows will be held in January in New York and Singapore for the same reason.

A major aspect of policy decisions taken in the energy sector is the move to conserve energy. The move was initiated during the caretaker government and the AL government has further worked on it.

In line with a policy adopted by the caretaker regime, the AL government withdrew all taxes on renewable energy back in January and kept on hammering on popularising solar and other renewable energy resources.

In addition, the government went all-out to encourage energy conservation by replacing conventional bulbs with energy-saving lamps. As part of it, the government will distribute 15 million free energy-saving lamps from February-March.

With a long-term view of coal sector development, the government floated the concept of developing a "coal city" in Barapukuria within months of assuming power.

In the first step for this, the government has conducted a survey and identified land and other issues. In the second step, it signed a memorandum with the people affected by the Barapukuria mine recognising for the first time public plight like displacement and loss of arable land due to mining.

This memorandum will ensure compensation for the affected.

However, at the same time the government failed to complete the coal policy. Energy Adviser Dr Towfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury, Bir Bikram had told The Daily Star the draft policy, which is being discussed for four years now, would be approved by the end of 2009.

A decision on this policy is seen as vital for giving the coal sector the right impetus.

The government also did not do anything new in the gas sector except for deciding to award a few offshore oil and gas exploration blocks to two international oil companies.

The production sharing agreements for these explorations have not been signed and offshore exploration remains uncertain due to dispute over maritime boundary.

The country is already suffering from gas supply shortfall, which cannot be improved overnight. Petrobangla has failed to demonstrate any leadership and its chief had played a key role in cancelling two tenders for installing devices to improve the quality of gas supply and utilise it.

Currently, old and new projects totalling more than 800 MW capacity are under implementation. Since assuming power, the government gave final approval to two power projects totalling 300 MW capacity.

In the roads and infrastructure sector, the communications ministry succeeded in getting a Tk 1,600 crore tender for upgrading the existing two-lane Dhaka-Chittagong Highway to four lanes.

This is a major success in holding a major tender that faced no allegation of bid manipulation. The major part of this job, approved by the cabinet in early December, was awarded to a Chinese company, while two Bangladeshi companies got parts of it.

The government also made some progress regarding construction of the Padma Bridge, which is estimated to cost around $2.39 billion.

The challenge for such a costly job is finding the finances. By December, the government succeeded in ensuring $2.2 billion from its development partners. Now the government is set to float the tender for this massive construction in February.

The government aims at completing the bridge by 2013 on the basis of public-private partnership. However, if the tender process slows down in 2010, the project will be delayed.

The government also okayed Tk 15,000 crore for a metro rail and elevated expressway in the capital. The tender for these jobs will be floated by April.

However, there is criticism against the way these jobs are progressing. Firstly, the communications ministry has conducted no feasibility study for any of these major infrastructure works. Secondly, the estimated budget seems to be unrealistically low.

But the communications ministry says the feasibility study for these works will be conducted by bidders participating in the tender for the jobs. The government did not conduct the study to save time and move ahead as fast as possible. This is a risky proposition, according to experts.

The government has also okayed a concept of constructing a second four-lane 215km highway from Dhaka to Chittagong at a cost of Tk 21,158 crore.

Besides, the government hosted a number of ideas on how the communications sector can be improved.

The year 2010 will be vital for the communications ministry as it now has many agendas on the table that must be pushed ahead. Or else, these initiatives will die down like many initiatives taken by the previous BNP-led alliance government.