Bangladesh Seeks to Set Up Coal-fired Power Plant in India

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources India (Delhi, India)--In a bid to bolster bilateral energy ties and to meet the growing electricity demand in the country, Bangladesh has suggested setting up of a thermal power plant through a joint venture in India. In this regard, Bangladesh has proposed that a coal block could be allocated to the joint venture entity, while power generated from the plant could be supplied to Bangladesh.

The proposed plant would be on the lines of the 1,320-megawatt (MW) thermal project being developed by Bangladesh India Friendship Power Company Private Limited (BIFPCL), a joint venture of Indian power major NTPC Limited (BSE: 532555) (New Delhi) and Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) (Dhaka), at Ramphal in Bagerhat district of Khulna Division.

Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury, energy adviser to Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina placed the proposal during a meeting with Indian Power, Coal and Renewable Energy Minister Piyush Goyal last week in New Delhi.

The plan is to look at the possibility of the Indian government allotting a coal block for setting up a thermal plant on a joint venture with a Bangladesh entity in India. According to Tawfiq-e-Elahi, the Indian government has expressed its willingness to take the proposal forward.

Bangladesh has an installed capacity of around 13 gigawatts (GW) and is looking to increase electricity supplies to meet the rising demand. Only 62% of the population has access to electricity with a per capita availability of 321 kilowatt-hour (kWh) per annum. The peak power deficit is in the range of 5-10%.

Bangladesh plans to meet its power generation needs by 2021 and would require 24,000 MW by then. The cost of generating power is higher in the country as most of it is currently generated by fuel-based power plants, making coal-based power generation an urgent requirement.

India, with in an installed capacity of 254 GW, generates over 66% of its electricity from coal. India is supplying about 500 MW of electricity to Bangladesh and plans are afoot to increase the supply to 1,000 MW.

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