Construction of 8 LNG power plants with 3,471MW capacity underway

Eight power plants based on gas or Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) with a combined generation capacity of 3,471 megawatts (MW) were under construction.

“The under construction gas or LNG based power plants having generation capacity of 3,471 MW will begin operation in phases from December 2020 to December 2022,” State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid told BSS today.

He said after assuming power, the present government constructed 111 new power plants having generation capacity of 18,606 MW in the last 11 years after taking time-befitting, realistic and sustainable steps.

Nasrul Hamid said, “Currently the country’s power generation capacity reaches 23,548 MW that has helped the government to bring about 98 percent people under power coverage and it has been possible due to bold and dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.”

“We have been making all-out strides to light up the country’s all households as well as ensure uninterrupted, quality and affordable electricity supply for all by ‘Mujib Barsha’ (Mujib Year), marking the birth centenary of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman,” he said.

According to ministry information, Ghorashal Unit-4 repowering 200MW, Shahzibazar 100MW, Bibiyana South 383MW, Ghorashal Unit-3 repowering 206MW will begin operation from next month.

Ashuganj 400MW power plant will join for electricity generation on June 2021 and Rupsha 880MW will begin operation from September 2022 to December 2022, as per the schedule.

Information provided by the ministry, however, said that Meghnaghat 584MW power plant will commence on July 2022 and Meghnaghat 718MW plant on August 2022.

According to the Power Sector Master Plan, the country needs to achieve continuous economic growth of 7.4 percent annually for the period 2016-2020 to initially reach the standard of medium to high-income nations.

Talking to BSS, Director General of Power Cell Engineer Mohammad Hossain said the power ministry is planning for setting up five more gas/LNG based power plants with capacity of 8,575 MW.

“We expect that the proposed plants would come to operation from June 2024 to December 2033 in phases,” he said, adding that at present, eight power plants with capacity of 3,471 MW are under construction.

The present government has achieved tremendous success in the enhancement of power generation capacity to make the country self-reliant in electricity supply and help reach power to every house.

Nasrul Hamid said the number of electricity consumers increased to 3.87 crore and per capita power generation reached to 512Kwh, which was only 220Kwh in 2009.

As part of the mega plan to generate 60,000 MW by 2041, the government has already been able to enhance power generation capacity to 24,000 MW including captive and renewable energy.

“We are laying emphasis on solar energy-based electricity aimed at enhancing contribution of renewable energy to 10 percent of total generation,” Nasrul Hamid.