Four-lane road to connect Cox\\\'s Bazar with Maheshkhali

The Matarbari 1,200-megawatt power plant project is going to get a big boost as the government would construct a 44-kilometre four-lane road from Cox's Bazar to Maheshkhali Island investing Tk 6.07 billion, officials said Saturday.
Power Division officials said the road will ensure smooth communication with the Chittagong-Cox's Bazar Highway to the Matarbari power plant site at Maheshkhali Island in the Bay.
"It is our preliminary work before going to install the country's biggest coal-fired power plant at Matarbari in Maheshkhali Island," said a senior Power Division official.
The Roads and Highways Department (RHD) will construct the 4-lane road to connect the island with the mainland, he added.
A RHD official said they have recently sought approval of the Tk 6.07 billion 'Connecting road to Matarbari power plant project' from the Planning Commission for constructing the road by December 2019.
Of the total cost, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) would provide Tk 5.05 billion fund as soft loan for building the 44-km road.
The RHD official said under the project, they would construct 44km road and a 640-metre bridge on the Kohelia River that disconnects the Maheshkhali Island from Cox's Bazar mainland.
The government has undertaken the Matarbari super critical coal-fired power plant at a cost of Tk 359.84 billion.
The JICA would lend Tk 289.39 billion while the rest amount of the total Tk 359.84 billion cost will be provided by the Bangladesh government from its own resources.
The state-owned Coal Power Generation Company Bangladesh Limited (CPGCBL) would install the plant along with a small deep sea-port for unloading the imported coals to be used at the proposed plant, a coal silo, ash disposal area, Matarbari-Anwara 61.5 kilometres 400-kilovolt transmission line and an access road.
The Matarbari will be developed a special energy hub developing townships and other facilities, the Power Division official said.
Installation of the Matarbari power plant, setting up of the port for coal unloading and development of the other related infrastructures are scheduled to be completed by June, 2023.
The Matarbari electricity generation plant will be one of the largest coal-fired plants in the country after the current 250MW capacity Barapukuria plant in the northern district of Dinajpur.
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