Energy experts at an energy talk in the capital on Saturday urged Bangladesh to phase out fossil fuels and ensure a just transition to renewable energy.

A group of nine green platforms organised the energy talk at the Liberation War Museum in the afternoon.

“Renewable energy is cheaper and makes sense to be used for development for its sustainability,” said Khondaker Golam Moazzem, research director, Centre for Policy Dialogue, a non-government think-tank. Over the years, Bangladesh pursued a flawed economic forecast and energy policy, ending up in overwhelming reliance on fossil fuel use, he said.

The result proved to be devastating with a massive amount of money spent in paying capacity charges to idle power plants, requiring the payment of huge energy subsidies, he said.

Excessive expenditures, however, failed to reduce the country’s energy crisis with frequent power outages occurring, affecting life and business, the energy expert said. The energy talk was attended by over 200 students.

“We need to ensure that energy transition is in line with just transition,” said Harjeet Singh, strategic adviser of Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty, an international campaign to stop fossil fuel exploration and expansion.

Fossil fuel use might look promising and beneficial at the moment because of its falling prices, he said, but fossil fuel investments are destined to get stranded.

Sharif Jamil, member secretary, Dhoritri Rokhhay Amra, a civil society green initiative, also spoke at the event.