11984-02_Ch02.qxd
3/4/10
12:54 PM
Page 12
12 World Bank Working Paper
Table 2.1. Household Distribution of Energy Sources by Division (percent) Division Energy Source Biomass Fuelwood Tree leaves Crop residue Dung cake/stick Sawdust
Chittagong 98.6 95.8 61.6 53.6 29.5 0.3
Dhaka 99.8 85.1 81.4 81.4 56.9 0.7
Khulna 100.0 88.7 91.8 75.4 64.8 1.6
Rajshahi 99.5 67.2 72.0 93.2 72.3 0.8
All Divisions 99.5 84.3 76.1 75.5 55.2 0.8
Non-biomass Kerosene Grid electricity Dry-cell battery Candle LPG/LNG Natural gas Storage cell Solar PV
100.0 98.4 38.9 42.3 10.6 1.1 0.9 0.8 —
100.0 99.0 43.8 39.1 2.5 — — 1.3 0.3
100.0 100.0 10.8 61.3 4.4 — — 0.9 1.5
96.5 91.5 20.3 50.7 0.8 0.2 — — —
99.1 97.2 29.0 48.0 4.7 0.3 0.3 0.8 0.4
Source: BIDS Survey (2004).
convenient for powering flashlights, radios, and other consumer electronics. Grid electricity is mostly derived from the cooperatives or PBSs (Palli Bidyut Samities), which serve rural areas through the national grid system. Nearly 30 percent of rural households use electricity provided by the PBSs, and the annual percentage continues to climb. This figure compares well with that of the Bangladesh Household Income and Expenditure Survey (HIES), conducted during the same period, which was 30 percent. Fuelwood is also the single most important rural energy source in terms of energy unit (kgoe), accounting for some 44 percent of total consumption (see Figure 2.1). Including tree leaves and twigs, the share of tree-based biomass is nearly 60 percent of total household energy. Crop residue (e.g., bagasse, jute sticks, rice hulls, bran; as well as various types of straw and uprooted plant remains) and animal residue (e.g., cow dung made into round cakes or sticks and dried before burning) constitute other major sources. Not generally used for cooking, modern fuels account for only 3 percent of the energy balance. Because of the significant amount of energy required by cooking and the inefficiency of most rural stoves, the useful or delivered energy is lower than the percentages presented; however, they highlight the importance of biomass for cooking. Estimated annual energy consumption by rural households is 1,049 kgoe or 8.9 gigajoules (GJ) per person—a vast increase from the 5 GJ per person consumed 25 years ago. Over the same period, the annual growth rate was more than 2.6 percent, higher than the average growth rate in per capita income. Indeed, when only biofuels are considered, growth appears even more remarkable. Leach (1987), using figures based on Islam (1980, 1986), reported that rural households used an estimated 4.2 GJ of biofuels. The corresponding fig-