Accelerating Green Buildings

Transition in Bangladesh

Bangladesh is becoming increasingly vulnerable to air pollution, sea level rise, high tide and river flood by cyclone,

potentially caused by greenhouse gas emissions from rising fossil fuel consumption. The Nationally Determined

Contribution of Bangladesh focussing on climate commitments hints at a targeted 25% reduction of overall energy

consumption in commercial buildings. Green buildings have proven to yield energy savings of 40 to 50% and water

savings of 20 to 30% when contrasted against conventional buildings thereby contributing towards sustainable energy

and supporting the climate goal of limiting global temperature rise to 2°C (above pre-industrial levels). Estimates by IFC

suggest that the green buildings market is worth USD 1 billion (commercial) and USD 2.2 billion (residential) by 2025.

7

The building sector in any given economy is known to have

significant environmental impacts, including a toll on electrical and

thermal energy consumption, and carbon dioxide emissions.

Energy demand has been on a constant upsurge in the country,

and a lot of it is attributed to industrial sector, to the tune of 50% of

national primary energy. By 2025, the demand for electricity is likely

to rise by 3,000 MW. Currently there are 21 industrial zones in the

country and a soft target of scaling it up to 42 is in the pipeline. This

is a straight indication at the sharp rise in electricity needs, which

can essentially be catered through green building strategies in the

industrial sector of the economy, to start with.

Coupled with strong energy demand is the rising population

and improving economy of Bangladesh. Bangladesh is the

eighth most populated country in the world, with tremendous

urban growth. While all sub-sectors are growing, the

residential sector is projected to take the majority of future

floor space. Multi-unit buildings are expected to be the

primary area of growth within residential, with an emphasis

on affordable housing.

Estimations suggest, there is a shortage of about 5 million houses in

Bangladesh, as of 2018. A third dimension parallel to the energy

challenge and perhaps most critical is the high climate vulnerability of

Bangladesh as outlined in the two recent key reports – The

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's ‘Fifth Assessment Report'

and World Bank’s ‘Turn Down the Heat’ The country is becoming

increasingly vulnerable to air pollution, sea level rise, high tide and river

flood by cyclone, potentially caused by greenhouse gas emissions from

rising fossil fuel consumption.

To fight all the above challenges with a view to futuristic climate resilience

and bridging the energy gap, green buildings which are principally

designed and built with a focus on energy and water conservation,

reduction of material waste, flexibility, durability, and comfort are a need

of the hour. The Nationally Determined Contribution of Bangladesh

focussing on climate commitments hints at a targeted 25% reduction of

overall energy consumption in commercial buildings. Green buildings

have proven to yield energy savings of 40 to 50% and water savings of

20 to 30% when contrasted against conventional buildings (World green

Building Council ). Green buildings can act as an effective tool towards

sustainable energy and support the global climate goal of limiting global

temperature rises to 2°C (above pre-industrial levels) positively.

Source: Sixth Annual Climate Change and Environmental Risk Atlas (Maplecroft)

High climate vulnerability, energy scarcity issues and environmental footprints hint at the need for Bangladesh to adopt resource efficient strategies in the building space

Exhibit 1: Global Risk Analysis placing Bangladesh in extreme risk category

21

The Bangladesh National Building Code was formulated in 2006

to achieve satisfactory performance of any building, control and

regulate construction in the country. It establishes minimum

standards for design, construction, quality of materials, use and

occupancy, location and maintenance of buildings within

Bangladesh in order to safeguard within achievable limits, life,

health, property and public welfare. This was followed by

development of Building Construction Rules after a couple of

years.

The green building movement was triggered afterwards when in

2012, a Recommendation document for Green Building Code was

brought out with the help of International Finance Corporation.

Bangladesh government policies are encouraging green and

sustainable buildings, as is evinced through the 7th Five Year Plan

outlining incorporation and introduction of Green Building Code

considerations in the National Building Code, standardization and

labelling of energy efficient electrical appliances & equipment,

implementation of Energy Management system for industries

Bangladesh is demonstrating strong regulatory intent to abide by a green development philosophy

2016

2012

2008

2006

Energy Efficiency &

Conservation Master

Plan 2030

Recommendation for

Green Building Code

with IFC support Bangladesh National

Building Code (BNBC)

Building Construction

Rules

2018

Building Energy & Environment

Rating For Design and

Construction of Buildings

(Draft)

A significant stride in the green building space was

formulation of the Building Energy & Environment Rating for

Design and Construction of Buildings (Draft) in 2018. Further,

Bangladesh’s Ministry of Housing and Public Works is

currently creating Green Buildings Guidelines.

Exhibit 2: Timeline of policy based developments in real estate space of Bangladesh

Stakeholder Key roles

Architects & consultants

Innovative designsCode compliance and technical due diligence

Code Development Agencies

Code developmentAwareness programs, market development

Financial institutions

Financial products:Targeted investments in green buildingsDiscount in insurance premiums

Government organisations

Regulations with strong compliance mechanisms Capacity building and job creationProperty and sales tax incentives

Owners and occupants

Take responsibility of built environmentDemand for sustainable and efficient buildings

Real estate developers

Adaptation to market needsSkills development

Technology providers

Innovation and localisation of state of art technologiesTrain people in technology/ service operation

Technology

provider

Financial

Insti-

tutions

Owners

and

occupants

Architects and

ConsultantsGovernment

organizations

Real estate

developer

Code

develop-

ment

agencies

Building

Trade

community

24

The building stock is projected to yield a total market of USS 9.7 billion for commercial property and USD 62.6 billion for residential units.

Estimates by IFC suggest that out of this market potential, the green buildings market is worth USD 1 billion (commercial) and USD 2.2

billion (residential) by 2025. The green market, while not fully established, grew considerably in 2015 and is making strides mostly attributed

to the industrial sector. The garment industry is primarily driving growth in green building. The country had its first green building back in

2011. As of now (2018), Bangladesh has witnessed 62 LEED certified activities, and close to 1 million LEED certified square metres.

The additional cost of constructing green building is projected depending upon the size and extent of project and the amount is USD 5,800 to

USD 9,500. It has been estimated for green buildings that the financial payback typically exceeds the additional cost of green building by 4-5

times over 20 years. The savings in monetary terms come from the efficient use of utilities which results in decreased energy expenses and

the projected savings in different sectors is to the tune of USD 130 billion on energy bills.

Expected market potential of over US$3 billion reflects

significant untapped potential in the market

Figure 3: Projected building stock and anticipated share of green buildings in Bangladesh till 2025

0%

2%

4%

6%

8%

10%

12%

0

200

400

600

800

2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025

Residential Office/ Retail Other commercial % new green buildings

Case in point: Plummy Fashions Ltd.

A knitwear manufacturing unit located in Narayanganj, 20 kms

south from Dhaka city centre. The site is 5.5 acres.

Platinum Rating under LEED for New Construction 2009

Platinum certified on 09/22/2015

Points earned: 92 out of 110

Tangible benefits and actions:

o 42% improvement on baseline building performance

rating

o 13% onsite renewable energy

o 35% green power purchase

o 20% recycled content building materials

o 20% regionally extracted, harvested, recovered, or

manufactured materials

o 50% FSC-certified wood products

o 75% diversion of construction and demolition debris

o 75% of occupied space has daylighting

o 100% reduction in potable landscape water use

o 40% reduction in baseline indoor water use

o 50% reduction in wastewater generation

Source: GBIG

Bangladeshi garment industry is currently leading the

world in adding green factories to the economy. There

are 67 LEED certified green factories in the apparel

sector in Bangladesh and more than 280 factories

registered for LEED certification. Apart from LEED, IFC

has developed the Excellence in Design for Greater

Efficiencies (EDGE) tool which empowers developers

and builders to quickly identify the most cost effective

ways to reduce energy use, water use and embodied

energy in materials. The strategies integrated into the

project design are verified by an EDGE Auditor and

certified by Green Business Certification Inc. (GBCI).

Renew

-ables

Energy efficiency

equipment

Climate Responsive Building Design

Source: IFC Green Buildings Market Intelligence Report for Bangladesh

26

Stakeholders are coming together to position Bangladesh

as world leader in green factories and best adapt from

international experience

Certified Green

Buildings in

Bangladesh

A total of 96 projects

with LEED

certification from

USGBC

17.91 M

LEED certified sqft

67 certified LEED

factories in apparel

sector – highest in

the world

IDCOL

Te

ch

pro

vid

ersEM

EIAReal Estate and Housing Association in Bangladesh (REHAB) A

ssu

ran

ce

TaxArchitects and Consultants

Run the business

Bangladesh Bank

Bangladesh Green Building Academy

National Housing Authority (NHA)

Bangladesh House Building Finance Corporation

EDGE tool

19

0,0

00 p

eo

ple

Asia Pacific

National Housing Finance and Investments Limited

International financiers

Emerging Markets Sector Leaders

LEED

Japan

Aca

de

mic

ians

Owners and tenants

Ho

us

e B

uild

ing

Re

se

arc

h In

sti

tute

Location

Adamjee EPZ, Narayanganj, Bangladesh

Developer

Bitopi Group

Size

Total area: 245,947 sqft

Product : Bottoms

Capacity : 450,000 pieces / month (approximate)

Use

RMG Factory

Rating

Highest rated green factory in Bangladesh (97/110)

LEED for New Construction 2009 Platinum certified on

07/15/2016

R e m i H o l d i n g s L t d

Tangible benefits

Renewable energy, emissions, water, energy efficiency

9% onsite renewable energy

35% green power purchase

40% improvement on baseline building

performance

100 tons/ year CO2 emissions reduction

(building is functional since January 2004)

40% reduction in potable water

consumption

Green

Measures

under-

taken

Energy and

atmosphere

• 40% improvement on

baseline building

performance rating

• 9% onsite renewable

energy

• 35% green power

purchase

Materials and resources

• 20% recycled content building

materials

• 20% regionally extracted

materials

• 50% FSC-certified wood

products

• 75% diversion of construction

and demolition debris

• 10% salvaged or reused building

materials

• 2.5% rapidly renewable materials

Indoor environment

quality

• 75% of occupied

space has

daylighting

• 90% of occupied

space has quality

views

Water efficiency

• 100% reduction in

potable landscape

water use

• 40% reduction in

baseline indoor water

use

• 50% reduction in

wastewater

generation

26

Location

Manila, Philippines

Developer

Imperial Homes Corporation, known for designing green

community that embraces the perks of eco-friendly lifestyle

Statistics

1,456 green apartments priced at approx. $40,000

each

Use

Residential building

Rating

EDGE for Homes Certificate

I m p e r i a l H o m e s , P h i l i p p i n e s

Tangible benefits

Renewable energy, water, materials

0.4 tCO2/year/home GHG reductions

42% energy consumption reduction: savings

of USD11/month/home

26% monetary savings through choice of

sustainable building materials

20% reduction in potable water consumption:

savings of 2.4kL/month/home

Reduced window to wall ratio

Use of efficient LED lighting

Installation of solar photovoltaic panels on home roofs

Low flow faucets for washbasins, kitchen sinks and showerheads

Corrugated Zinc sheets for roof

In situ reinforced wall for external walls

Ferro-cement Wall Panel for Internal Walls

Green

Measures

under-

taken

Remi Holdings Ltd, Bangladesh Imperial Homes, Philippines

26

Multidimensional challenges are hindering the

proliferation of green buildings in BangladeshThe green building market is perceived to have immense potential in Bangladesh but requires a highly conducive ecosystem to help realise the

potential. The adjacent exhibit demonstrates positioning of the green building landscape in the country with respect to five major facilitating

pillars.

G O V E R N M E N T B I Z E N V I R O N M E N T F I N A N C I N G

C U R R E N T G R E E N

M A R K E T

G R O W T H

P O T E N T I A L

Evidently, there are three very particular areas that need deep strengthening to realise the growth potential of the green

building market.

a. Policy incentives are being created by the government. It is now also and equally important to raise

awareness among project developers on the long-term benefits of green buildings. Further instruments of the

likes of public housing of green building, rent certification, bonus density, could be explored to attract

investors, developers and owners/ tenants.

b. The Green Building guidelines, or incorporation of such considerations in the building code is of utmost

importance. It can be complemented by an abiding policy on voluntary certifications for all new constructions,

which can give additional branding based driver for developers to pursue.

c. As is understood from the gaps, climate-smart investment, including in green buildings to improve access to

low-cost, long term finance has a huge role to play. Going forward, access to finance is required to be heavy

eased for promoting greater green building development in Bangladesh.

Bangladesh must recognise the immense growth potential of green buildings,

multiple socio-economic benefits and roll out strategies targeted at solving critical

bottlenecks

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About IDCOL

Infrastructure Development Company Limited

(IDCOL) was established on 14 May 1997 by the

Government of Bangladesh. Since its inception,

IDCOL is playing a major role in developing and

financing infrastructure, renewable energy and

energy efficiency projects in Bangladesh. Today the

company stands as the market leader in private

sector energy and infrastructure financing in

Bangladesh.

What IDCOL offers:

• Long Term Local and Foreign Currency

Loan for Infrastructure Projects

• Agency services

• Debt and Equity Arrangements

• Corporate Advisory Services

• Training and Capacity Building Services

• Soft Loan and Grant for Renewable Energy

Projects

46 Electric mobility in India: Leveraging collaboration and nascency

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