Bangladesh has suffered a primary power crisis in recent months due to the emerging global power following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and has imposed normal blackouts to save electricity.
But it’s still unclear what triggered Tuesday’s unplanned blackout, which affected more than 80 percent of the country shortly after 2 p. m. (08:00 GMT), according to the Electric Development Board.
Apart from a few towns in northwestern Bangladesh, “the rest of the country is electricity,” spokesman Shamim Ahsan told AFP.
The illuminated streets of central Dhaka and other cities were dark Tuesday night.
Ahsan said 130 million or more people were without power and it’s not yet clear what caused the blackout.
“It’s still under investigation,” he said, adding that the most likely cause is a technical malfunction.
Another official later said 60% of the impoverished country, which is home to factories supplying clothing for Western brands, had been affected.
Since then, some of those affected have restored power at night, Badruddoza, spokesman for the national power company, told AFP.
Deputy Technology Minister Zunaid Palak said on Facebook that it would be restored at 8 p. m. in the capital Dhaka, a megacity is home to more than 22 million people.
Prices of energy, food and other commodities soared globally following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February, and joined Asia.
This has wreaked havoc on Bangladesh’s power grid in months, with utilities struggling to get enough diesel and fuel to meet demand.
Currency depreciation and dwindling foreign exchange reserves have prevented Bangladesh from raising enough fossil fuels, forcing it to use diesel plants and idling some gas-fired power plants.
The government imposed prolonged power cuts to conserve existing stocks in July, with blackouts lasting up to thirteen hours a day at their peak.
Tens of thousands of mosques in the Muslim-majority South Asian country have been advised to use air conditioners to relieve strain on the power grid.
The cuts in force sparked public anger and helped mobilize giant protests in the streets of Dhaka.
At least three protesters were killed by security forces in the demonstrations, motivated in part by emerging cost-of-living pressures.
Another hundred people were injured in a police crackdown on a demonstration, according to the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party.
Consumer inflation has hit household budgets hard, and the government recently pledged to limit the value of several staple foods, adding rice, to ease public discontent.
Bangladesh last experienced an unplanned primary blackout in November 2014, when nearly 70 percent of the country was without service for about 10 hours.