Siddhirganj peaking power plant unit opens today
Sunday, 14 February 2010
FE Report
Prime Minister (PM) Sheikh Hasina inaugurates today (Sunday) one unit of the two-unit 240-megawatt (MW) Shiddhirganj peaking plant, more than one year after the original schedule for initiating operation.
This is the first power plant the PM is going to inaugurate under the present Awami League-led government. Indian firm Bharat Heavy Electric Limited (BHEL) has built the gas-fired power plant with assistance from the Manila-based Asian Development Bank (ADB).
The ADB provided around US$ 110 billion to build the two unit gas-turbine power plant, having the electricity generation capacity of 120-mw each. State-owned Electricity Generation Company of Bangladesh (EGCB) was the implementing agency of the plant.
The EGCB and BHEL had signed a Tk 11.33 billion contract to build the power plant on January 31, 2007. As per the contract the BHEL was supposed to initiate electricity generation from the plant by December 2008, senior PDB officials said.
Per day 20 million cubic feet (mmcf) of gas would be required to run one unit of the Shiddhirganj power plant to generate 120 mw of electricity, and its per unit electricity generation cost will be Tk 2.014.
As the country is already reeling under an acute gas crisis, the government might stop supplying gas in some other plants to ensure gas supply in Shiddhirganj power plant.
The BHEL was awarded the project as the lone competitor, following recommendations of the Netherlands-based consultant firm KEMA International.
Two firms - BHEL and Chinese Harbin Power Engineering Ltd (HPE) - had completed tender procedures of the Shidhhirganj plant in 2007.
The technical evaluation of the ADB found Harbin's score poor, as the company had failed to comply with the guidelines properly despite offering the lowest bid, the PDB officials added.
Prime Minister (PM) Sheikh Hasina inaugurates today (Sunday) one unit of the two-unit 240-megawatt (MW) Shiddhirganj peaking plant, more than one year after the original schedule for initiating operation.
This is the first power plant the PM is going to inaugurate under the present Awami League-led government. Indian firm Bharat Heavy Electric Limited (BHEL) has built the gas-fired power plant with assistance from the Manila-based Asian Development Bank (ADB).
The ADB provided around US$ 110 billion to build the two unit gas-turbine power plant, having the electricity generation capacity of 120-mw each. State-owned Electricity Generation Company of Bangladesh (EGCB) was the implementing agency of the plant.
The EGCB and BHEL had signed a Tk 11.33 billion contract to build the power plant on January 31, 2007. As per the contract the BHEL was supposed to initiate electricity generation from the plant by December 2008, senior PDB officials said.
Per day 20 million cubic feet (mmcf) of gas would be required to run one unit of the Shiddhirganj power plant to generate 120 mw of electricity, and its per unit electricity generation cost will be Tk 2.014.
As the country is already reeling under an acute gas crisis, the government might stop supplying gas in some other plants to ensure gas supply in Shiddhirganj power plant.
The BHEL was awarded the project as the lone competitor, following recommendations of the Netherlands-based consultant firm KEMA International.
Two firms - BHEL and Chinese Harbin Power Engineering Ltd (HPE) - had completed tender procedures of the Shidhhirganj plant in 2007.
The technical evaluation of the ADB found Harbin's score poor, as the company had failed to comply with the guidelines properly despite offering the lowest bid, the PDB officials added.