500mw power to be bought from India in two yrs: PM

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CHANDPUR, Apr 25 (Agencies): Prime minister Sheikh Hasina said Sunday that 500MW of power will be purchased from India in the next two years.
Hasina also said her government has taken the initiative to import electricity through regional cooperation with South Asian and South East Asian countries.
"The present government has taken effective steps to import electricity on urgent basis from India, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and China," she said while addressing the foundation stone laying ceremony of Chandpur 150 MW combined cycle power plant.
Hasina blamed lack of steps to increase power generation during the tenure of the past governments for the current crisis and said that her government was now taking steps to increase generation.
The PM said that work was underway to set up a sub-station at Bheramara and construct a transmission line from Bahrampur of West Bengal to Bheramara in Bangladesh. "We hope we'll be able to import 500 MW of electricity from India by 2012."
Sheikh Hasina mentioned that the initiative to build this plant was taken during her party's last tenure and said, "We approved this project in the Apr 10, 2001 ECNEC meeting."
"However, no steps were taken to build this plant in the following five-year tenure of the BNP or the two-year tenure of the caretaker government. Even though it has been delayed, the plant is finally being built at Chandpur," the prime minister said.
A total of Tk 1.2 billion is being spent to build Chandpur's 150MW combined cycle power plant - a task being undertaken by a Chinese engineering company ChengDa. The plant is supposed to contribute to the national grid from 2012
The prime minister criticised the former four-party coalition government and said, "Not only did they not take steps to increase power generation, they also did not buy any new gas rigs, explore any new gas reserves or dig any new gas wells to increase the gas supply."
She also restated government's target to raise power production to 9,426MW by 2015.
Hasina said, "Currently, we are scrutinising various options to increase power generation. We are actively analysing the option to establish a nuclear power plant."
The prime minister's energy advisor Tawfik-e-Elahi, state minister of power Muhammad Enamul Huq and others were present at the occasion.
This was the first visit of the prime minister to Chandpur after commencing office. She visited the area on Jan 27, 2002. Hasina had earlier visited Chandpur as the prime minister during her last tenure on Nov 28, 1998.
Power Development Board (PDB) chairman ASM Alamgir Kabir presided over the function.