4,600MW plants to be set up
MoUs signed with two Indian cos
On the first day of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modis historic visit, Bangladesh yesterday signed two separate memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with two leading Indian power giants to set up 4,600 MW power plants in the country. Adani Power Limited and Reliance Power Limited signed MoUs worth of USD 5.5 billion with the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) at Mukti Hall of Bidyut Bhaban. Vneet S Jaain, chief executive officer of Adani Power Ltd, and Sameer Gupta, vice-president of Reliance Power Ltd, signed on behalf of their companies, while Jahrul Islam, company secretary of the BPDB, signed on behalf of the state-owned power entity.
As per the MoU, Adani Power Ltd will construct two 800 MW ultra super critical coal-based power plants at Moheshkhali in Coxs Bazar at a cost of USD 2.5 billion. The coal needed to run the plant will be imported from India.
Reliance Power Ltd signed the deal to set up an imported Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)-based combined cycle power plant, with a capacity to produce 3,000 MW of power. Along with the plant, a floating storage and re-gasification unit (FSRU)-based LNG terminal to supply re-gasified LNG to the power plant will be constructed. The group plans to invest USD 3 billion to set up the plant, which will be the largest ever foreign direct investment (FDI) in the country. The site of the proposed plant hasnt been decided yet.
Talking to reporters after the event, Sameer Gupta, vice-president of Reliance Power Ltd, said the plant will be near the coastline, so that the imported LNG needed to run the plant could be supplied directly. We will finalise the site soon. That will be our first step after the MoU. The BPDB told us that they will provide us the land at appropriate locations, Gupta told reporters.
Gupta said Reliance Power, a part of the Reliance group, has world class equipment, procured from internationally reputed equipment suppliers. It plans to install the same equipment, including advanced class 9FA machines supplied by the US-based General Electric (GE) in the proposed project.
This will help set up the project on a fast-track basis, he said, adding that within the next 30 month, Reliance Power will try to add 1,500 MW of power to the national grid of Bangladesh.
Vneet S Jaain said Adani Power is the largest private electricity producer of India, with a total production of over 11,000 MW of electricity. We plan to expand our wing and come to Bangladesh, he said.
Jaain said the Adani group plans to produce 20,000 MW of electricity within 2020. Constructing a plant in Bangladesh is part of their mega plan.
Monwar Islam, secretary of the Power Division, told the two Indian power giants that they should not disappear after signing the MoU. Please dont disappear after signing the MoU. We have had bitter experience previously. Please start the practical work as soon as possible, the Power Division secretary said in his speech.
Speaking as chief guest, Nasrul Hamid, state minister for energy, power and mineral resources, said interconnectivity of friendly states was the concept of SAARC.
This power import from India represents that connectivity. People have often asked me why not import power from Nepal or Bhutan. I said hydro-electric power from those countries will be imported later on, as that will take time. We have already started importing 500 MW of electricity from India. Another 100 MW will be imported by the end of this year, he said.
The state minister said the energy and power sector has got the second largest allocation in the Annual Development Plan (ADP) budget. It shows our Prime Ministers honest intention of making Bangladesh a middle- income country within the next few years.
Abu Bakar Siddque, secretary of the Energy Division, and Shahinul Islam Khan, chairman of the BPDB, were present on the occasion.
