Cash-strapped Bangladesh shuts power plant amid sweltering heatwave
Bangladesh government has completely shut off the 1,320-megawatt Payra Power Plant in the country as it was unable to afford the coal to fuel it amid surging power demand due to sweltering heatwave
PremiumBangladesh government has completely shut off the biggest power plant in the country as it was unable to afford the coal to fuel it amid surging power demand due to sweltering heatwave.
The 1,320-megawatt government-run Payra Power Plant had already stopped production in its first unit on May 25 due to fuel shortages, news agency AFP reported.
"Due to the coal shortage, the plant came to a complete shutdown at 12.15 pm today" the agency reported quoting Shah Abdul Mawla, manager at the power plant. Mawla added the production could be restored within three weeks when coal shipments arrive.
Meanwhile, Minister for Power Nasrul Hamid, expressed hope that the plant would soon be able to resume operations. "We can't provide coal, gas and fuel sufficiently," the power minister said, blaming ‘economic factors’ include securing letters of credit.
The minister said "We have made some significant progress in importing coal. Hopefully, Payra will be able to resume power supply from 25 June."
In recent past weeks, Bangladesh has faced nationwide blackouts of up to five hours a day amid surge in power demand due to heatwave sweeping across the country.
The country recorded a temperature of 41.1 degrees Celsius on Monday. The government has closed primary schools across the country until Thursday in a bid to combat the heatwave.
ABM Badruddoza Khan, spokesperson of Power Grid Company of Bangladesh, said the country had experienced a "2,500 MW shortage of electricity in the national grid", compared to 2,200 MW a day earlier, with daily demand around 16,000 MW.
The shutdown is likely to intensify the power shortage in the national grid until the resumption as the plant used to inject around 1200MW of electricity per day.
Bangladesh is struggling against a depreciating currency, with foreign exchange reserves slumping from $46 billion in January last year to $30 billion at the end of April this year.
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