500MW power import from India unlikely before 2017
UNB
The governments move to import 500 MW of electricity from Indian private sector is unlikely to see any breakthrough before mid-2017, reports UNB.
According to official sources, the state-owned Power Development Board (PDB) will solidify the move once the construction of a separate substation which will require about 2 years time is completed.
Thats why the whole process of the proposed import of 500 MW of electricity in addition to the existing one is getting delayed, chief engineer (planning) of the PDB Mizanur Rahman told UNB.
On several occasions in the past, New Delhi gave its consent to Dhaka s proposal to import 500 MW of electricity from its private sector in addition to the import of the existing 500 MW one.
Indias firm consent came from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his Dhaka visit in June this year.
Earlier, Indian power secretary PK Sinha expressed his countrys positive gesture to this proposal during a joint steering committee meeting of the both countries in Dhaka in May this year.
Upon the receipt of the Indian go-ahead signal, Bangladesh moved to materialise the project. In this case, it had to first undertake a project to build a separate grid substation alongside its existing substation in Bheramara point where Dhaka receives power from India.
At present, the existing substation is being utilised for the import of 500 MW of power from Indian state-owned power plants.
But the new substation will be used for the import of Indian private companies power, said Mizanur Rahman.
He also informed that state-owned Power Grid Company of Bangladesh (PGCB) has been engaged to implement the project to set up the substation.
Power Divisions additional secretary Anwar Hossain said the Asian Development Bank (ADB) is extending cooperation in implementing the project as it did to implement the Bheramara-Baharampur transmission line project along with setting up the first substation.
He said it would require about two years for setting up the substation. During this two years time, Bangladesh will float tender to select Indian companies to import the committed 500 MW power.
Our highest effort will be made to make it sure that we could start the import of additional 500 MW power from private sector of Indian before end of 2017, he added.
