BKMEA seeks utility bill installment relief
Analysis based on 6 articles · First reported Aug 15, 2026 · Last updated Aug 15, 2026
The request, if granted, would ease short-term liquidity pressure on Bangladesh's knitwear exporters, supporting export earnings and employment. However, the underlying energy crisis raises production costs and threatens the competitiveness of the country's garment sector, which is a key driver of its economy.
Amid severe gas and electricity shortages in Bangladesh during July and August 2026, the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) requested the government to allow garment factories to pay their gas and electricity bills for those two months in 12 equal monthly installments. BKMEA President Mohammad Hatem sent a letter to Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Iqbal Hassan Mahmood on 9 August, seeking intervention and directives. The letter cited acute energy supply disruptions that crippled production, forcing factories to purchase expensive alternative fuels like diesel and LPG with cash, increasing production costs and straining cash flows. BKMEA argued that a lump-sum payment would be a severe financial burden and that installment relief would help maintain production, protect export orders, preserve foreign exchange earnings, and safeguard jobs. Copies were sent to the South Korea — Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources, Bangladesh — Petrobangla, Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution PLC, Dhaka Power Distribution Company, Bangladesh — Bangladesh Rural Electrification Board, and Dhaka Electricity Supply Company.
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