The Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase (CCGP) on Wednesday approved 12 proposals worth Tk 72,540.41 crore, including extending the term of four rental power plants.
The approval came at the CCGP meeting, held virtually with Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal in the chair.
Briefing reporters after the meeting virtually, Cabinet Division Additional Secretary Md Shamsul Arefin said that the CCGP approved a total of 12 proposals with the extension of four old rental power plants including setting up a new gas or Regasified Liquified Natural Gas (RLNG) based 660 MW power plant at Mirsharai upazila in Chattogram.
Besides, the government has extended the term of four rental power plants with a total generating capacity of 173 MW to five years on the condition that the government will buy power only when it is needed.
He said a consortium of Confidence Power Holdings Limited, GE Capital US Holding Inc, Confidence Power Limited, and Electropac Industries Limited has been given the go-ahead to set up the gas or RLNG based power plant.
In a 22-year period, the government will buy electricity worth Tk 69,152.16 crore from the power plant, he added.
He informed that CCGP has also given tenure extension of the four rental power plants. Of them, he informed that a 53 MW gas-based rental power plant in Ashuganj, Brahmanbaria, sponsored by United Energy Ltd, has been extended for five years.
Tk 451.20 crore will be spent to buy electricity from the plant, he added.
He mentioned that the Kumargaon 50 megawatt gas-based rental power plant, located in Sylhet sadar upazila, gets a tenure extension of one year, until December next year, from where the government will buy electricity at a cost of Tk 86.52 crore.
He said another gas-based 50MW rental power plant of Energy Prima Ltd in Fenchuganj, Sylhet gets a tenure extension of three years.
The extension will cost the exchequer Tk 278.64 crore for buying electricity, he added.
He said the tenure of the Energy Prima Ltd, another 20 MW gas-based rental power plant in Bogura district has also been extended for three more years.
The government will buy electricity from the plant at Tk 106.92 crore, he added.
Asked about the necessity of tenure extension of the power plant, Mustafa Kamal said rental power will be bought on no electricity, no pay basis.
He said the tenure of many rental power plants have already passed and they have realised capital costs and all other things.
“We won't have to pay extra charges for their operations. Only electricity prices will be paid,” he added.
The minister said Bangladesh will have to set up some more power plants to meet demand as the government has stopped giving approval to new coal-based power plants in line with its commitment to saving the planet from the impacts of climate change.