Current Status: Operation
(Source: Sarabangla)
Chandpur 150 MW Gas Power Plant, also known as Chandpur CC Power Station, or Chandpur Peaking Power Plant, is a Combined Cycle (CC) power plant situated at Balier Maath, Truck Road under Chandpur Sadar Upazila in Chandpur District of Bangladesh (Location: 23.2217, 90.6683). It is sponsored by the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) as a State-owned Power Plant (SOPP) for 25 years. The power plant started its commercial operation on 3 March 2012 and, as per schedule, it will retire on 2 March 2037.
Capacity
The installed (gross) and derated (net) capacity of the power plant is 150 MW and 163 MW respectively.
Context
The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) approved this power project in 2001 but due to the ending of the term of the 4-parties alliance in July of that year the progress was stopped (DS, 2010a). On November 3, 2009, the Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase approved the Chandpur 150 Megawatt Combined Cycle Power Project, costing around BDT 1,006 crore, more than three times the initial estimate. Previously, the Chinese company Harbin won the projected deal at USD 45.20 million but was canceled due to increased costs during the caretaker government's tenure, with Harbin seeking USD $16 million after signing (DS, 2009). Then the Power Development Board (PDB) signed a contract for the Chandpur 150 mw gas-fired combined cycle power project with China Chenga Engineering Co (CCEC) on 08 February 2010 (DS, 2010).
After crawling for about a decade the foundation stone for the Power Plant laid (DS, 2010a). Though the construction was supposed to be finished before January 2012 (FE, 2012), the power plant was estimated to complete the construction by June (Asian Power, 2012). The power plant started production in November 2012 after a 10-month delay (DT, 2023).
The power plant was running well till December last year. Due to the maintenance of the power plant, the first 50 MW of the power plant stopped production on December 3, 2022, and the remaining 100 MW on December 5, 2022, according to the center's engineering department. On February 7 of this year, the decision was made to turn on the 100 MW unit following 50 days of repairs and upkeep. However, because some of the pieces are broken, it has been turned off. (Ittefaq, 2023).
The power plant was closed since December 2022 due to lack of renovation and maintenance, has reopened after one year and two months. However, due to gas shortage, the center is not able to produce 100% electricity now. At present 50 MW electricity is being connected to the national grid (Amader Somoy, 2024).
Land Acquisition
The power plant acquires a land of 6.2 acres at Balier Maath, Truck Road under Chandpur Sadar Upazila in Chandpur District of Bangladesh (according to the Google Earth).
Finance
The project will be constructed at a cost of BDT 1200 Crore, of which 55% will come from external sources and the rest 45% from the government resources (Asian Power, 45678N0M,2012).
Sponsor
It is sponsored by the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) as a State-owned Power Plant (SOPP) for 25 years.
Contractors
Chinese construction company Chengda Engineering Company worked as the contractors of this power plant established in Balur Math, close to Chandpur town.
Fuel Supply
The power plant uses natural gas from the Bakhrabad Gas field, Comilla.
Power Generation
According to the BPDB daily generation data in 23-24 the power plan produced no electricity.
Environment
According to Section 12 of the Bangladesh Environment Protection Act 1995, Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is obligatory for any industry (MOLJPA 1995). Polluting industries, such as power plants, must undergo an Initial Environmental Examination (IEE) and EIA as directed in the Environmental Conservation Rules 2017 (MOEFCC 1997). But, to date, no IEE or EIA report has been conducted for the power plant. Moreover, DFG Combustion produces air pollutants such as nitrogen oxides (NOx), sulfur dioxide (SO2), particulate matter (PM), and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). These pollutants can contribute to smog formation, respiratory issues, and other health problems.
Criticism
The Chandpur 150 Megawatt Power Plant in Bangladesh is experienced issues due to excessive sand particles in the air, sourced from a sand business along the Dakatia River. The plant's 1,500 air filters reach their maximum capacity caused power generation to be halted for two to three days (DTa, 2013).
References
Amader Somoy (2024). “আংশিক চালু হয়েছে চাঁদপুর বিদ্যুৎ উৎপাদন কেন্দ্র”. Amader Somoy: 15 March 2024
Asian Power (2012). “Bangladesh's 150 MW Chandpur Power Plant completed by June”. The Asian Power: Assessed on 18 November 2023
DS (2010). “Chandpur project okayed at triple cost”. The Daily Star (DS): 4 November 2009.
DS (2010). “Govt signs its first public sector power deals”. The Daily Star (DS): 09 February 2010.
DS (2010a). “A tale of two power plants”. The Daily Star (DS): 28 April 2010.
DT (2023). “Power generation at Chandpur plant halted”. The Daily Tribune (DT): 20 May 2023.
DTa (2013). “Chandpur 150MW power plant in risk”. The Dhaka Tribune (DTa): 04 May 2013.
FE (2012). “Delay, fund crisis plague large power plants implementation”. The Financial Express (FE): 07 January 2012.
Ittefaq (2023). “Chandpur 150 MW power plant shut for 5 months”. The Daily Ittefaq: 19 May 2023.
MOEFCC 1997. The Environmental Conservation Rules. Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MOEFCC): 27 August 1997
MOLJPA 1995. Bangladesh Environment Conservation Act 1995. Legislative and Parliamentary Affairs Division, Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs (MOLJPA): 16 February 1995.