Load shedding has intensified in Khulna and other southwestern areas after Unit 2 of the Rampal Thermal Power Plant went offline due to a technical fault, cutting the plant’s generation by more than 500MW.
Consumers in Khulna, Barisal and other areas under the West Zone Power Distribution Company Limited (WZPDCL) have been facing frequent power cuts, with outages occurring at roughly one-hour intervals in parts of Khulna.
Unit 2 was shut down on Sunday morning after its boiler overheated and an internal technical fault was detected.
Two specialist engineers from India are expected to arrive to repair the unit, but they had yet to reach the plant as of Wednesday afternoon. Their arrival could take another two to three days, while the plant may require a further three to four days to return to full generation, authorities said.
According to WZPDCL’s power control room, demand in its service areas stood at 807MW at 1pm on Wednesday, while supply was 629MW. The shortfall resulted in 129MW of load shedding.
In the Khulna zone, demand was 618MW against a supply of 494MW, resulting in 124MW of load shedding. In the Barisal zone, demand stood at 189MW against a supply of 135MW, leaving a 54MW shortfall.
Load shedding was recorded at 56MW in Khulna, 8MW in Magura, 13MW in Kushtia, 11MW in Jhenaidah, 6MW in Chuadanga, 6MW in Faridpur, 12MW in Rajbari, 6MW in Madaripur, 2MW in Shariatpur and 4MW in Gopalganj.
In the Barisal zone, 31MW of load shedding was recorded in Barisal, 5MW in Jhalakathi, 3MW in Pirojpur, 6MW in Patuakhali, 3MW in Barguna and 6MW in Bhola.
The situation was less severe on Tuesday. At 7pm, WZPDCL recorded demand of 747MW against a supply of 717MW, with 30MW of load shedding. Khulna had a 26MW shortfall and Barisal 4MW.
However, at 1pm on Tuesday, the utility had supplied the full 778MW demanded by consumers, with no load shedding in either Khulna or Barisal.
The Rampal plant, built under a joint venture between Bangladesh and India, had been supplying more than 1,100MW to the national grid daily before the shutdown.
With Unit 2 offline, total generation has fallen below 600MW, reducing output by more than 500MW.
Rampal Thermal Power Plant Chief Public Relations Officer Anwarul Azim said local engineers had already begun preliminary work on the boiler.
“Once the Indian specialist engineers arrive, the boiler repair work will be carried out. It may take at least another three to four days for the plant to return to full generation,” he said.
Bangladesh Power Development Board Member for Generation Md Zahurul Islam said the shutdown unit was currently undergoing a “cool-down” process.
The plant authorities said there was sufficient coal stock at the facility.
The sudden shutdown has added to pressure on the power supply system in the southwest, particularly in Khulna, where frequent outages have disrupted daily life amid the heat. Consumers have urged authorities to complete the repair work quickly and restore Unit 2 to full operation.