Private solar project plans Tk10-per-unit hike during tourism season, prompting protests from residents and businesses
A privately run solar project is now Saint Martin’s Island’s main power source, but rising tourism-season demand is forcing the operator to rely on diesel generators. Citing higher fuel and operating costs, Blue Marine Energy Limited has announced a Tk10 per-unit increase, angering residents and businesses, while generator use raises noise and environmental concerns.
The Bangladesh Power Development Board’s two-generator station at Paschim Uttarpara, set up on about five acres in the 1980s, supplied around 600 consumers for a few hours each evening. It has been out of operation for over three decades, since a May 1994 cyclone felled over 150 poles and snapped power lines.
On February 1, 2019, Blue Marine Energy set up a 250-kilowatt, 915-panel solar project on about two acres in Konapara for around Tk20 crore. It serves around 1,000 consumers: 140 hotels, 20 restaurants, 600 households, 157 shops, six irrigation pumps and 15 electric three-wheeler charging points.
The island reopened to tourists on November 1, when daily demand could reach 400–500 kilowatts, beyond the solar project’s capacity. Residential consumers pay Tk42 per unit and commercial users Tk52. From November 1, these rise to Tk52 and Tk62.
More than 150 consumers staged a human chain and rally in front of Euro Bangla Resort on October 21. Speakers included Saint Martin’s Union BNP president Md Nurul Alam, who said rates were already high and the increase had caused anger, and former Teknaf upazila Chhatra Dal joint convener Javed Iqbal.
Hotel owners Abdur Rahim and Rahim Ullah also cited deductions from prepaid meter recharges and meter charges, recalling that the project began in 2019 promising affordable, uninterrupted power. Resident Nurul Karim said limited incomes and restricted tourist arrivals made higher prices harder to bear. Businessman Tayeb Taher questioned the fuel-cost justification, saying households and businesses were already struggling.
Owner Jafar Ahmed Patwari said the project generates around 138 kilowatts a day after system losses, insufficient for over 1,000 consumers. He said the island has more than 500 battery-powered tomtoms, alleging that two-thirds of the electricity used to charge them comes through illegal connections. He also claimed illegal connections had spread from around 600 household meters to several hundred other homes, and that workers were attacked when trying to disconnect them.
Most batteries failed within five and a half years, short of the projected 10-year lifespan, he said. Replacements ordered from China under a letter of credit could take another month and a half. He blamed the price rise on seven consecutive rainy days that sharply cut solar output, plus software or server faults, which forced the use of two high-capacity generators.
In the season, more than 230 hotels and resorts and over 200 restaurants and shops would operate, lifting demand to 500–600 kilowatts, with solar supplying around 180 and generators the rest, he said. Diesel costs Tk135 a litre, plus Tk40 per litre for transport from Teknaf. Despite investing around Tk20 crore, he claimed he had yet to make a profit, and said more solar projects by the government, private firms or individuals would ease pressure on his facility.
Sub-assistant engineer Abdullah Shihab said the notice was issued because generators would boost supply when fuel costs were higher. Asked why prices were six to seven times normal rates, he referred the question to assistant engineer Mohammad Rafiq.
Saint Martin’s, about eight square kilometres in the Bay of Bengal, was declared an Ecologically Critical Area in 1999 to protect its biodiversity, coral reefs and turtle breeding grounds. More than 230 hotels, resorts and cottages have reportedly been built without environmental clearance, according to local sources, many using diesel generators. Environmentalists allege that generator noise and vibrations late into the night disrupt turtle nesting.
Department of Environment Cox’s Bazar deputy director Khandaker Mahmud Pasha said generator noise and battery-powered vehicle movement would be regulated during the three-month season from November 1.
Power Development Board Cox’s Bazar executive engineer Abdul Kader Gani said a solar project is planned on the abandoned station’s site and would help resolve the shortage if implemented. Union acting chairman Foyezul Islam suggested wind power along the western, southern and eastern beaches. Former union parishad chairman Mujibur Rahman said an earlier solar attempt on that land failed due to opposition from influential quarters, and urged solar or wind projects for the island’s around 11,000 residents.
Cox’s Bazar Development Authority member Lieutenant Colonel Abu Naim Mohammad Talat said the Bangladesh Army was preparing a master plan for planned development while protecting the environment and biodiversity. Solar needs large land areas, which are hard to find on the island, he said, while 10 wind turbines at sea could potentially meet demand.
By Tarekur Rahman
Photo: Hussain Shetu
