584MW power to be added to nat’l grid by October

Unique Meghnaghat Power Limited (UMPL), a 584MW natural gas-based combined cycle power plant in Narayanganj, will add that much electricity to the national grid by October this year.

“Around 92 per cent of the plant’s construction has been completed. It will come into commercial operation in October,” Calum David Cornforth, site manager of the EPC contractor of GE Gas Power, made the disclosure when US Ambassador to Bangladesh Peter Haas visited the site on Wednesday.

Presenting the latest status to the ambassador, David said the project was awarded to the consortium of Strategic Finance Limited, Unique Hotel & Resorts Limited, and GE Gas Power on June 25 in 2018. Later, Nebras Power Investment Management BV, an entity of Nebras Power QPSC, entered it by acquiring a 24 per cent equity stake.

‘US to be Bangladesh’s top FDI source’

During the visit, Haas told journalists US investors are eager to invest more in Bangladesh, thanks to the fast-growing economy and better investment environment.

“Today is my first anniversary as the ambassador here in Bangladesh.

To celebrate it in a better way, I visited the power plant which American and Bangladeshi companies have partnered with to build,” he said.

The plant will generate power for 700,000 households by using natural gas, he said, adding it is a wonderful plant.

“US businesses are really interested in investing and doing business in Bangladesh. I know Bangladesh is a small country, but it has huge human resources. It is a fast-growing economy and a great place for investment,” the envoy said.

He added that Bangladesh has improved its regulatory and business environment.

The government has improved the investment climate and US companies will come here, Haas said.

“We are number one in foreign investment here. I am optimistic that the US will remain the number one foreign direct investment source for Bangladesh in the future, too,” he said.

He observed that the US will do everything it can to help Bangladesh reach its desired destination and become a prosperous country.

UMPL Chairman Mohd Noor Ali said, “We are really very happy that a company from the ambassador’s own country is involved in the project. Today, the ambassador, after visiting the project, said it is a great job.”

“GE Gas Power is supporting us in the power sector in a big way. It is a very good plant for the people, and electricity has played a key role in the dawn of civilisation. GE has many other projects here. We hope they will continue the cooperation in the future, too,” said Noor Ali, also the managing director of Unique Group.

Noor Ali thanked all who worked to build the plant and also locals for their support to finish such a project.

“There was nothing a year ago, but today we are proud to see the plant here. The commissioning of the plant will take the country one step closer to achieving the goal of the power sector master plan and Vision 2041 in order to become a developed country.”

‘World-class infrastructure’

To make the plant conform to international standards, UMPL, a special purpose vehicle incorporated in September 2018, has signed a $463 million loan agreement with different foreign lenders to meet debt requirements.

The loan will be provided at a 75:25 debt-to-equity ratio, where Unique Hotel has 37.24 per cent economic interest. The tenure of the loan is 15 years.

The company’s Managing Director Chowdhury Nafeez Sarafat commended the contribution of US companies, including GE, in providing the latest technology gas turbines to Bangladesh’s much-needed power infrastructure.

UMPL, a collaboration of international investors, including GE and Nebras, alongside lead investors from Bangladesh, has secured international debt financing from SERV, Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, DEG, and OPEC Fund, he said. “This will make it a world-class infrastructure project, providing cleaner, reliable, and affordable electricity to the people of Bangladesh.”

He also said it is an environment-friendly power project as it will emit lesser greenhouse gas compared to the other existing combined cycle power plants.

“This project will be a big contributor to the commitment of Bangladesh to achieve nationally determined contributions as per the Paris Agreement. In the plant, GE’s latest 9HA.01 gas turbine has been used, which will operate at more than 62 per cent efficiency whereas the traditional gas turbine efficiency is around 30-40 per cent.”

Nafeez said GE’s 9HA.01 heavy-duty gas turbine offers the most cost-effective conversion of fuel into electricity.

“Such highly energy-efficient technology will generate electricity by consuming reduced levels of natural gas compared to other conventional technologies. As a result, the government will be able to use the available gas, one of the scarcest resources in Bangladesh today, more efficiently,” he added.

Deepesh Nanda, chief executive officer of GE Gas Power in South Asia, said, “GE Gas Power is committed to bringing affordable, reliable, and sustainable power generation technology to Bangladesh and has been contributing to transform the power sector in the country by offering advanced powering technology and power service solutions.”