Bangladesh launched a plan to establish 100 Economic Zones across the country to promote planned industrialization and create employment. As part of that initiative, an Economic Zone was developed on 436 acres of land in Jamalpur. Since May 2025, only one company — Fervent Multiboard Industries Limited — has started production there. But frequent power shortages have disrupted its operations, discouraging other investors from moving forward with new projects.
The Jamalpur Economic Zone, located in the Digpait area beside the Jamalpur–Tangail regional highway, was established in 2016. The goal was to attract local and foreign investment, increase exports, and generate jobs. The industrial zone was officially ready for operation in 2021. Since then, 22 companies have signed agreements to begin production, including those in the garment, agro-based, medical, and surgical sectors. Nine of them have completed infrastructure development, and eight large factories are awaiting launch. In reality, however, only one company has begun operations in the four years since, and its production remains severely hampered by electricity shortages. Despite applications, no gas connection has yet been approved.
Fervent Multiboard Industries Limited initially planned to use 60 acres of land in the Jamalpur Economic Zone to produce particle boards, but currently operates on 35 acres. The factory was expected to employ around 2,000 people, but now only 700 workers are employed. Company officials said the absence of an uninterrupted power supply and a gas connection has thrown production into deep uncertainty. The factory has been unable to meet its output targets, forcing frequent downtime for workers.
According to the factory’s human resources department, Fervent Multiboard’s daily production target is 900 cubic meters of particle board. Due to power and gas shortages, output has fallen to just 300 cubic meters. As a result, the company is struggling to cover production costs and other expenses. Frequent power outages have also caused substantial losses.
Although construction of the factory continued over the past three years, formal production only began in May 2025. Management officials said the recurring blackouts pose a serious risk of industrial accidents inside the plant.
Regarding the issue, Mahmudul Islam, chief operating officer (COO) of Fervent Multiboard Industries Limited, told Bonik Barta, “In government-run economic zones, all essential utilities such as gas, water, electricity, and transportation are provided through the relevant departments or agencies. That’s why private investors take land allocations here to set up factories. We also received land from BEZA in the Jamalpur Economic Zone and established our factory. We invested heavily and launched operations within a short time. But due to power shortages, our overall production and operations are being severely disrupted. We are not receiving the amount of electricity we need, and whatever supply we get is inconsistent. Frequent load-shedding continues to interrupt our production.”
Mentioning that the factory’s electricity is often cut off suddenly without prior notice, he added, “This causes serious damage to expensive machinery. On one occasion, the power went out during production, and a machine caught fire. Under such circumstances, it’s becoming very difficult for us to keep the factory running. A large portion of our investment is now at risk. We have already installed machinery for another production unit, but we cannot fully operate it due to the lack of electricity.”
Mahmudul Islam warned that if the situation continues, the company’s financial health will weaken. He said, “If our company goes sick, the banks that financed us will also suffer. This will have a negative impact on the broader economy and employment. Local and foreign investors will lose interest in investing in government-run economic zones. Therefore, we urge BEZA and the concerned authorities to take steps to ensure an uninterrupted power supply as per our demand. At the same time, we request the government to provide gas connections so that companies can produce their own electricity if needed.”
Factory officials said the plant requires 20 megawatts of electricity per month to stay fully operational, but the Rural Electrification Board (REB) currently supplies only 3 megawatts. This makes full-scale production nearly impossible. Despite repeated applications to Titas Gas for a connection, no approval has been granted yet. The main access road to the factory is also in poor condition.
When contacted, Rubaiyat Islam Sifat, Assistant Director of the Jamalpur Economic Zone under BEZA, declined to comment, saying, “Officials at BEZA’s head office in Dhaka need to be contacted regarding these matters.”
When a senior executive member of BEZA was reached for comment, the official said, “The issues of gas and electricity supply are very sensitive, so it wouldn’t be appropriate to comment at this stage.”
Asked about the power supply, Md Mostafizur Rahman, general manager of Jamalpur Palli Bidyut Samity, told Bonik Barta, “To supply the factory with the required amount of electricity, the power plant that serves this area would need to increase its generation capacity.”
Regarding gas connections, Durjoy Khokshi, manager (Engineer) of Titas Gas in Jamalpur, who oversees supply to the Economic Zone, said, “Only the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources can make the final decision on this matter.”