The untapped potential for renewables on Dhaka rooftops
On the occasion of the International Day of Clean Energy, rooftop solar energy emerges as a beacon of hope for sustainable development in urban centres like Dhaka, where population density is seemingly at odds with the high land availability required for solar. But innovation, imagination, and the right design could maximise utility from the supposedly limited space in our bustling city.
Amidst the worsening climate crisis, the energy transition—shifting from fossil fuels towards renewable energy to reduce carbon emissions—is becoming an imperative. Renewable energy in Bangladesh remains far below the government's target of achieving 10 percent by 2025 and is heading off course in achieving 15 percent by 2030, 40 percent by 2041, and 100 percent by 2050. The urgency in scaling up required to meet these targets is still largely missing. While solar energy dominates the country's renewable energy portfolio, its implementation is riddled with challenges.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. Bangladesh, as a signatory to the Paris Agreement, has committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and transitioning to a more sustainable energy mix. However, the country's current energy generation mix reveals significant and continued reliance on fossil fuels, with 39.63 percent of installed capacity coming from natural gas, 22.97 percent from coal, and 18.83 percent from heavy fuel oil (HFO). Renewable energy contributes only 4.96 percent of the total installed capacity, highlighting the pressing need to accelerate the adoption of sustainable energy sources.
Within the renewable energy mix, solar power accounts for 1256 MW, with 705 MW generated from large-scale solar parks. This underscores the untapped potential for distributed solar energy systems, particularly rooftop solar, to complement centralised solar parks and enhance the country's renewable energy portfolio. After all, the first renewables success story in the country was the deployment of over 5 million solar home systems (SHS) across rural, remote areas of Bangladesh. Decentralised energy also holds a significant advantage in not incurring as much transmission loss as large-scale utility solar production.
The Bangladesh National Building Code (BNBC), 2020, mandates that residential buildings must meet at least 3 percent of their total electricity demand using solar or other renewable energy sources, while all other building types are required to generate at least 5 percent renewable energy. Building owners often install panels to meet regulatory requirements but fail to maintain or activate them, leading to underutilisation of a valuable resource; yet about 200 MW of rooftop solar panels installed around the country, both net-metered and non-net-metered as part of compliance measures, remain dormant due to a lack of enforcement and proper monitoring.
A 2022 NEO report funded by the World Bank highlights that with 4,25,244 residential, commercial, industrial, and public buildings featuring vast unused rooftops, the city has a remarkable opportunity to transform its horizon into a decentralised network of solar power generators of up to 6949 MW. Despite this vast potential, rooftop solar adoption in Dhaka remains shockingly low. According to the Sustainable and Renewable Energy Development Authority (SREDA), the city has only 67.4 MW of non-net-metered and 15.4 MW of net-metered solar panels installed. Studies further indicate that approximately 80 percent of this installed capacity remains unutilised due to inadequate monitoring and enforcement, highlighting a significant gap between potential and actual implementation.
Vietnam provides a valuable example of how strategic policies can accelerate the adoption of renewable energy, particularly rooftop solar systems. The government introduced a series of measures, including favourable feed-in tariffs (FiTs), which significantly boosted solar panel installations nationwide. Policies like net metering and fiscal incentives further encouraged rooftop solar adoption by making the technology more accessible and financially viable for households and businesses. Additionally, Vietnam established a Sustainable Renewable Energy Fund, supported through state budgets and environmental fees on fossil fuels, to finance renewable energy projects. These initiatives led to a dramatic increase in rooftop solar capacity, with cities such as Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang becoming hubs for solar energy generation. In addition to incentives for rooftop solar, it has developed a robust solar module and panel production sector, becoming the largest supplier in Southeast Asia. By 2022, Vietnam had saved $1.7 billion in fossil fuel costs, thanks to this rapid scale-up of solar PV.
India's remarkable progress in rooftop solar energy offers another compelling case to consider. By 2024, India added 4.59 GW of rooftop solar capacity, a 53 percent increase from the previous year, driven by targeted policies and incentives. Initiatives like providing substantial subsidies for residential installations aim to achieve 30 GW of rooftop solar capacity by reaching 10 million households.
These strategies highlight actionable pathways to accelerate rooftop solar adoption and bridge existing gaps in implementation. Similar strategies can be adopted, such as FiTs and dedicated renewable energy funds, to unlock Dhaka's vast rooftop solar potential and bridge the gap between policy and implementation. Part of the solution is to also increase awareness and access to information, as well as create better market conditions, such as by removing the unnecessary high tariffs on the various components of solar modules.
To realise the full potential of rooftop solar in Dhaka, immediate action is needed. Authorities must enforce existing regulations under the Bangladesh National Building Code and introduce stronger monitoring mechanisms to ensure compliance. Financial incentives, such as subsidies, low-interest loans, or tax benefits, can encourage building owners to activate and maintain solar installations. Public awareness campaigns highlighting the benefits of rooftop solar can further drive adoption and dispel misconceptions about its costs and maintenance.
The International Day of Clean Energy reminds us of the urgency of transitioning to renewable energy. For Bangladesh, rooftop solar is more than just a technological solution—it is a pathway to energy independence, climate resilience, and a cleaner urban environment. It's not just an environmental argument but also an economic one, with the cost of solar plummeting globally over the past decade and a half. The foreign reserve crisis in Bangladesh has been exacerbated by fossil fuel imports—continuous costs that renewable energy avoids. By leveraging its untapped rooftop potential, Dhaka can lead the way in achieving the country's renewable energy goals, inspiring other cities to follow suit.
The interim government has already signalled its desire to set up PV manufacturing in Bangladesh, a welcome initiative. By reorienting our energy sector and committing to moving away from the negative practices of the past, Bangladesh can transform its energy future, contribute meaningfully to the global fight against climate change, and hopefully save a few dollars too along the way.
Rysul Hasan Hredoy is research and documentation officer at the Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association (BELA).
Bareesh Hasan Chowdhury is campaign and policy coordinator at the Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association (BELA).
Views expressed in this article are the author's own.
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