The Adani power plant in India, which supplies electricity to Bangladesh through Rahanpur in Chapainawabganj, has ceased production for the plant’s maintenance and technical fault, creating a significant deficit in Bangladesh's electricity supply.
The plant, which has two units, could produce around 1,500MW of electricity. The first unit was already shut down for regular maintenance while the second unit stopped production due to a malfunction on Friday.
The date for resuming production is yet to be confirmed by the power plant.
Officials from the Power Grid Company of Bangladesh (PGCB) and the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB), which are responsible for the national grid's electricity supply from the power plant, confirmed this information to the media.
The official said that on June 25, production from the second unit dropped to half due to a technical fault. Production was gradually increasing, but around 9:40am on Friday, it completely shut down. The plant is currently investigating the fault.
Foreign Minister: Bangladesh to import electricity from Nepal through IndiaKhandaker Mokammel Hossain, member of the BPDB, said: “The first unit of the Adani power plant is expected to resume production on July 5. The sudden shutdown of the second unit has created a deficit. The power plant has not yet announced when it will return to production.”
During the Eid-ul-Azha holidays, when demand was low, the first unit of the Adani power plant was taken offline for maintenance. Each of the two units has an 800MW production capacity. The sudden shutdown of one unit has led to a significant shortfall in the country's electricity supply.
Additionally, a 622MW unit at the Payra power plant has been shut down for maintenance since June 25, causing loadshedding in rural areas outside Dhaka. However, due to rain on Saturday, the electricity demand has decreased, bringing some relief.
The first unit of the Adani power plant began supplying an average of 750MW of electricity in March last year. Production from the second unit started in June, 2023. A few days later it started production, in June, the transmission line in Rahanpur was slightly damaged due to a storm, which led to the shutdown of Adani's electricity supply. After repairing the fault, production resumed at the facility, which had disrupted the electricity supply for several days.
