Talks ongoing to generate hydrogen power from seawater: PM

Dhaka(The Daily Star/ANN)-Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday told parliament that discussions are going on about the production of hydrogen electricity from seawater.

She said this in response to a query by Awami League lawmaker Anwar Hossain Khan.

For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. Referring to the new concept of hydrogen power generation from seawater, the premier said discussions are underway with all the concerned companies proposed in this regard.

"If possible, the feasibility of hydrogen power generation at Matarbari, Maheshkhali or Banshkhali will be verified," she said in her scripted answer.

In his question, Anwar Hossain wanted to know whether the government has plans to set up a hydroelectric power station to generate electricity from seawater at a convenient location in the Bay of Bengal near Cox's Bazar.

In response, the Prime Minister said in some countries, electricity is generated by using sea tides, which is costly and has not been commercially successful. There are currently no plans to set up such a power plant.

Mentioning that the production of hydrogen electricity is very costly, she said such a plan can be taken if the costs come down in the future.

While responding to another query by AL lawmaker Mahfuzur Rahman, Hasina said 1,558 bridges and 7,498 culverts have been constructed or reconstructed during the tenure of the incumbent government.

"The work to upgrade 908.49 km of roads to four lanes or more is also in progress. Of this, 235.03 km of roads have already been made into four lanes or more," she added.