After seven days of complete shutdown, Barapukuria coal-fired power plant has partially returned to production as its first unit resumed operations on Sunday afternoon, according to plant officials.
The 125MW Unit-1 was brought back online at 2pm, offering a temporary relief to the national supply system that faced additional strain due to the sudden outage.
Power generation at Unit-1 had stopped on 19 October due to a major mechanical fault, while the 275MW Unit-3 remained offline since 16 October for technical reasons.
Unit-2 has been out of operation since 2020, leaving the entire plant fully shut down until Sunday’s restart.
According to Chief Engineer Abu Bakkar Siddique, the partially restored unit is currently generating electricity but still requires close monitoring as technical checks continue.
He said discussions are underway with the Chinese manufacturer to restore Unit-3, although resolving its faults may take up to three months.
On paper, the three units of Barapukuria have a combined installed capacity of 525MW — two units of 125MW each and one 275MW unit.
However, production records indicate that the plant has never operated at its declared capacity.
Officials acknowledge that the 125MW units have often generated only 60–70MW each, while the 275MW unit has produced between 160 and 175MW — far below its rated output.
Experts say this chronic underperformance, along with repeated mechanical failures, continues to raise serious concerns about operational standards and overall management of the critical power facility.
Residents of Dinajpur and surrounding districts now await clarity on when the country’s lone coal mine–dependent power station will fully regain capacity.
