Bangladesh requests full power supply resumption from Adani: Reuters

In a recent development, Bangladesh has requested that Adani Power restore the full electricity supply from its 1600-megawatt plant, which had been reduced due to ongoing payment issues.

This was confirmed by a Reuters report.

According to the report, Bangladesh had been receiving only half of the power from the plant for more than three months, due to lower demand during the winter months and a dispute over payment.

The dispute, involving delays in payments due to foreign exchange shortages, resulted in one of the units being shut down last November, causing the plant to operate at just 42% capacity.

This power deal between Bangladesh and Adani Power was signed back in 2017 under the leadership of then-Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

The agreement was for a 25-year term, where Adani’s two 800-megawatt units located in Jharkhand, India, would supply electricity exclusively to Bangladesh.

Following the reduced supply, Bangladesh urged Adani Power to continue providing the same level of service and requested the restart of the second unit.

The Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB), a state-owned organization, mentioned that it has been paying Adani $85 million every month to clear outstanding bills and has now asked the company to resume supply from the second unit.

BPDB Chairman Mohammad Rezaul Karim shared,

"As per our current demand, they planned to restart the second unit on Monday, but it was not possible due to high-level vibrations."

He added,

"Currently, we are paying $85 million per month. We are striving to pay more, and our objective is to reduce the arrears. At this point, we don’t have any major issues with Adani."

A source, who asked not to be named, disclosed that a virtual meeting between BPDB and Adani officials was scheduled for Tuesday following a recent face-to-face meeting.

While an Adani Power spokesperson was unavailable for an immediate comment, a company source had previously stated in December that BPDB owed $900 million to Adani, though Chairman Karim clarified that the debt was closer to $650 million.

The issue mainly revolves around disagreements over pricing and how electricity tariffs are calculated. According to the 2017 agreement, the price is determined by averaging two indices.

The Reuters report also highlighted that electricity from Adani to Bangladesh costs roughly 55% more than the average price of electricity sold in New Delhi, India.