As the mercury rises and electricity demand surges, two major setbacks have left the power grid struggling, with consumers facing unprecedented challenges.
A unit of the Adani Group’s power plant in India, which had been supplying electricity to Bangladesh, was shut down due to technical issues. Following that, Barapukuria Thermal Power Plant in Dinajpur has also been forced offline, worsening the power supply situation.
Due to the supply shortage, the capital Dhaka, which had been relatively free from power outages, is going to be hit with load shedding.
“A 110-megawatt load shedding would be implemented in Dhaka as part of an emergency decision,” State Minister for Power, Energy, and Mineral Resources Aninda Islam Amit announced on Thursday.
The latest crisis unfolded late Wednesday night when a mechanical failure caused the shutdown of the only operational unit at the Barapukuria Thermal Power Plant. The 125-megawatt unit, which had been running smoothly, ceased production at 10:10pm, further exacerbating the power situation in eight northern districts, including Dinajpur.
Abu Bakar Siddique, the plant’s chief engineer, explained that the failure occurred when stones mixed with coal damaged the unit’s boiler pipes and broke its cooling fan. Repair work is expected to take four to five days before production can return to normal levels.
The plant’s other two units, one with a capacity of 125 megawatts and the other 275 megawatts, have been out of service for some time, contributing to the ongoing power shortfall.
Earlier this week, one of the two operational units at Adani’s coal-fired power plant in Jharkhand, India, suffered a mechanical failure, leaving the plant unable to supply power.
The plant, with a total capacity of 1,600 megawatts, has been a key supplier of electricity to Bangladesh since 2017, under a 25-year purchase agreement signed with the Power Development Board.
The country’s total power generation capacity stands close to 29,000 megawatts, while the highest recorded demand has yet to exceed 15,000 megawatts, according to official figures. However, a series of setbacks has left the country grappling with power shortages.
Eighteen power plants have been fully shut down due to a gas shortage, while fourteen others remain inactive because of a lack of fuel. Additionally, mechanical failures and maintenance issues have led to the closure of another ten plants. Five more plants are also out of service due to the expiry of their contract periods.
Escalating load shedding
Just a week ago, official figures showed that load shedding amounted to just over 1,000 megawatts. However, this has now increased to 3,000 megawatts.
According to the Ministry of Power, Energy, and Mineral Resources, Thursday’s peak demand was recorded at 17,000 megawatts, while production reached 14,000 megawatts.
The day before, during the peak hours, the maximum demand reached 15,767 megawatts, while supply stood at 13,681 megawatts.
Government statistics, however, remain inconsistent. The Rural Electrification Board has reported a separate figure, which also shows load shedding nearing 2,000 megawatts.
On Thursday, the state minister for power, energy, and mineral resources announced plans to implement load shedding in Dhaka, aligning with the power cuts happening across the country.
Explaining the decision, the minister said, “It is not desirable for city dwellers to remain comfortable while rural people, particularly farmers, suffer. The spirit of the July uprising was a vision for an egalitarian Bangladesh.”
“Therefore, there should be no disparity between the city and the village. To eliminate this inequality, we have decided to implement load shedding in the city, if necessary,” he added.
The minister also highlighted that ensuring electricity supply for irrigation in rural areas was another key reason for this step.
Minister Anindya Islam Amit also held the ruling Awami League government responsible for the ongoing electricity crisis. He said, “The power shortage is not a temporary issue, but a result of the mismanagement accumulated during the previous ‘fascist’ government.”
He further criticised the discrepancies between the reported production capacity and the reality, stating that there was a significant gap between the official figures and the actual situation.
