Welcome to Business Outlook
Related Articles
Unique group is going to set up a combined-cycle power plant having a peak capacity of 584 MW in Meghnaghat of Narayanganj. The power plant is expected to start its operation within 2022.
Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) with Unique Meghnaghat Power Limited (UMPL) at Bidyut Bhaban in the capital on Wednesday.
The power plant will occupy an area of around 19 acres and the overall estimated cost of the project would be about 520 million USD.
State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid witnessed the signing ceremony as the chief guest. He said that currently, 94 percent of people are under electricity coverage and 100 percent coverage will be ensured within this year.
Pointing at the recent development of the private sector companies the state minister claimed that nowadays the private sector is generating almost 50 percent of the electricity. The government is gradually shifting from oil or liquid-fuel based power generation to gas and coal-based power generation. Older power plants having poor efficiency are being shut down. Nasrul Hamid also informed that the coal-fired powered power plant of Rampal would start power generation within the next December and the country would also be brought under cent percent electricity coverage by this time.
Under the deal, Unique Group will commission the power plant in the next 3 years and the government will be buying power from UMPL for the next 22 years. The cost of per unit of electricity will be some TK 2.95 once it is natural gas-powered and the price will be TK 5.44 while it will use re-gasified liquefied natural gas (RLNG) considering a dollar exchange rate of TK 80 per USD.
UMPL also signed an Implementation Agreement and Gas Supply Agreement with the Government of Bangladesh and Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company Limited respectively.
Secretary of BPDB Saiful Islam Azad, Managing Director of Unique Group Chowdhury Nafees Sharafat, joint secretary of power division Faizul Amin, company secretary of PGCB Mohammad Jahangir Azad and Titas secretary Mahmudur Rob has signed the PPA contract on behalf of their respective agencies.
Among others chief coordinator of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to the Prime Minister’s Office Abul Kalam Azad, US Ambassador in Dhaka Earl R Milar, power secretary Dr Ahmed Kaikaus, Energy Secretary M Rahmatul Munim, Petrobangla chairman Ruhul Amin, BPDB Chairman Engineer Khaled Mahmood and NBR chairman Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan, UMPL chairman Nur Ali were also present at the deal signing ceremony.
Abul Kalam Azad said that Bangladesh has achieved self-sufficiency in the power sector. The implementers of the Meghnaghat have to take the challenge of completing the project within due time, he added.
Chowdhury Nafeez Sarafat, the Managing Director, UMPL, said that the power plant would be built as part of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s dream to ensure 100 percent electricity coverage in the country.
(EB)
