Bangladesh has reduced its outstanding electricity payment dues to Adani Power by more than half over the past year, with regular payments helping restore full-capacity power supply from the Godda plant and easing concerns over cross-border electricity imports.
The arrears owed to the Indian business conglomerate have fallen to around US$400 million from about $900 million last year, as the government has been making payment at a "satisfactory" level, market insiders said.
Both generating units at the plant supplied 1,455 MW during the daytime peak and 1,476 MW during the evening peak on Sunday (July 5), according to official data from the state-run Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB).
"It is good to see that Adani's Godda power plant is supplying electricity at its full capacity to Bangladesh," Iqbal Hasan Mahmood, Adviser to the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources (MPEMR), told The Financial Express on Monday.
It could not, however, be confirmed whether Adani had waived the late-payment surcharge on the payments made by the BPDB.
Last year, the Indian business conglomerate offered Bangladesh an opportunity to settle overdue payments of around $900 million by June 2025 to avoid the late-payment surcharge stipulated in the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA).
Adani also offered to waive the surcharge accrued between January and June 2025, provided BPDB paid its monthly invoices on time and cleared all outstanding dues as of December 2024 by June 30, 2025.
A senior BPDB official said the utility subsequently cleared the arrears, enabling it to secure a waiver of the late-payment surcharge.
Under the PPA with BPDB, Adani is entitled to charge a late-payment surcharge of 2.0 per cent per month on outstanding bills, equivalent to an effective annual rate of around 27 per cent, according to sources.
Power imports from the APJL plant have remained a much-debated issue in Bangladesh since electricity supply from the facility began several years ago under what critics describe as an overpriced deal signed by the now-deposed Awami League government.
After APJL began supplying electricity, BPDB sought a revision of the PPA governing power imports from the Jharkhand plant, but the two sides have yet to reach an agreement.
The 25-year agreement was signed in November 2017, with electricity transmitted to Bangladesh through a dedicated 400-kilovolt (kV) transmission line connected to the national grid.
The agreement has faced criticism over issues including coal pricing, capacity payments, tax waivers and other associated costs.
Adani shut down one of the two generating units at its Jharkhand plant on November 1, 2024, halving electricity exports to Bangladesh because of mounting payment arrears.
The company also warned that it would suspend operations at the remaining unit from November 7 unless BPDB took steps to clear the outstanding dues.
However, Adani later withdrew its decision to halt power generation completely after BPDB made a payment of US$170 million through a letter of credit (LC) opened by Bangladesh Krishi Bank.
Azizjst@yahoo.com