People's Energy Plan 2050
Data Series: Electricity Consumption by the Economic Sectors in Bangladesh

Despite official declarations of universal grid coverage, Bangladesh's energy landscape is severely burdened by structural inefficiencies, inequitable resource allocation, and deeply flawed administrative oversight. Rather than fostering equitable national development, the existing infrastructure heavily favors private financial interests, routinely siphoning public funds to pay for massive amounts of unused generation capacity. Consequently, everyday citizens and productive economic sectors are left to endure escalating costs and highly unreliable service. Addressing these deep-rooted flaws requires dismantling the current centralized, fossil-fuel-dependent framework and committing to a decentralized, 100% renewable energy transition driven by climate justice and public welfare.

Key Findings

1. Residential Dominance: The residential sector's share of national electricity consumption has surged, growing from 45.8% in 2007-08 to 57.6% by 2024-25. However, the state's narrative of universal access hides a stark reality: millions of households continue to face low voltage, frequent load-shedding, and disrupted daily activities.

2. Industrial Vulnerability and Inefficiency: The sector's share of national electricity demand dropped from 39.1% to 27.3%. Heavy reliance on inefficient gas-fired captive generators wastes imported LNG, and this persistent fossil-fuel dependency threatens the RMG industry's export competitiveness against strict global green mandates like the EU's CBAM.

3. Marginalised Periphery: Energy consumption is heavily skewed toward the centre, with Dhaka accounting for over 43% of residential demand. Conversely, rural divisions like Barishal and Sylhet consume the least, highlighting an urgent need for decentralized energy governance to ensure equitable development

4. Agricultural Strain: Agricultural electricity use shrank by 7.2% in 2024-25, worsened by severe aquifer depletion in the Barind region. Farmers remain squeezed by expensive diesel and unreliable grid power, while complex loan procedures keep vital solar-powered irrigation pumps (SIPs) out of reach for most smallholders.

5. Emergence of Unmanaged Sectors:Transport power demand is surging at 22.3% annually, driven by electric three-wheelers. However, without solar integration, charging on a fossil-fuel grid simply shifts emissions from tailpipes to power plants.

6. Systemic Governance Failure: The core crisis stems from poor governance, not a lack of capacity. Over 11,500 MW of the 31,000 MW national capacity sits idle daily, draining over BDT 1,56,000 crore in capacity charges to private producers since 2009.

Expected Citation: Mehedi, H., & Arman, A.B. (2026). Electricity Consumption by the Economic Sectors in Bangladesh. Coastal Livelihood and Environmental Action Network (CLEAN): March 2026.