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Haripur 100 MW (BPDB) Dual Fuel Power Plant

  • Jun 25
  • 4 min read

Current Status:  Under Maintenance

Source: Zaubee


Haripur 100 MW Dual Fuel Power Plant, also known as SBU Haripur Power Plant, is a Gas Turbine (GT) power plant situated in Madanpur under Bandar Upazila in Narayanganj District of Bangladesh (Location: 23.6845, 90.5302). It has been sponsored by the Special Business Unit (SBU) of the Bangladesh Power Development Board as a State-owned Power Plant (SOPP) for 25 years. The two units of the Power Plant started commercial operation on 31 October 1987, 15 November 1987. As per schedule, they were to retire on 30 October and 14 November 2012. The second unit of 32 MW was phased out on 30 June 2020, the first unit of 32 MW on 30 June 2022, while the third unit is still operational but no power generation happened in the fiscal year 2023-24. Phase 1 of this power plant did not generate energy from 11 December 2016  to till now because of machine problems. Phase 2 and Phase 3 of this power plant  was in long term maintenance from 18 June 2009. 


Capacity

The Installed (gross) and derated (net) capacity of the power plant is 2×32 MW and 20 MW respectively.


Context

The gas turbine power station at Haripur is situated on the eastern bank of the River Sitalakhya and about 20km south-east of Dhaka (TBS 2020). The power station comprises three units, with a capacity of 32.02 MW each. A report of 2018 expressed the delay in public sector power projects especially for poor monitoring and crisis of funds. Also it came out that power division provides more concentration on costly fuel based power projects in the private sector instead of public sector projects. Because of the limited attention to public sector projects, low cost power plants like Haripur  100 MW Dual Fuel Power Plant are slowing down (DS 2018). An e-tender was published on 18 February 2024 for procurement of leverage for employees of Haripur 100 MW gas power plant (BPDB 2024). As per BPDB annual report of 22-23 Generation Capacity Installed (MW) as on 30 June 2023 of Haripur GTPP is 32 MW. 


Land Acquisition

The power plant has taken  approx. 4.86 acres of land (Calculated via Google Earth).


Finance

No information about finance has been disclosed so far regarding this power plant.


Sponsors

It has been sponsored by the Special Business Unit (SBU) of the Bangladesh Power Development Board (TDS, 2000).


Contractors

No information about contractors has been disclosed so far regarding this power plant.


Fuel Supply

Gas and HSD is used by this power plant which is supplied by Petrobangla in the whole nation. A Power Cell document confirms that a 14-inch diameter Tee-off gas line from Dewanbagh specifically provides fuel gas to the Haripur 100 MW GT power station. The gas is supplied by Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company, a Petrobangla subsidiary, at a government-regulated tariff (WB, 2008) .


Power Generation

The power plant had a capacity of 100 MW but after phasing out of the 2nd unit, it has a capacity of 64  MW but net capacity of 20 MW. Since the last several years the power plant has had almost no generation. 


Environment

The power plant, operating on gas and high-speed diesel primarily composed of methane and potentially other hydrocarbons, falls under the category of fossil fuels. Its electricity generation leads to the release of harmful pollutants such as CO2, NOx, CO, VOCs, and PM, posing threats to human health and contributing to air pollution. In compliance with Section 12 of the 1995 Bangladesh Environment Protection Act, industries, including polluting entities like power plants, are mandated to undergo both an Initial Environmental Examination (IEE) and an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) as outlined in the 1997 Environmental Conservation Rules (MOLJPA 1995; MOEFCC, 1997). The absence of an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report for the power plant raises concerns. A more environmentally conscious alternative involves implementing a carbon tax and transitioning towards renewable energy sources. According to the environmental conservation rule 2023 the project falls in the “Orange” indicating it as a moderately harmful project for the environment (MOEFCC 2023).


Criticism

The Haripur 100 MW Dual Fuel Power Plant has been criticized for operating far beyond its originally scheduled retirement date. The first two units, commissioned in 1987, were scheduled to retire on 30 October 2012 and 14 November 2012 respectively, but continued operating for several additional years. Although Unit-2 was officially phased out on 30 June 2020 and Unit-1 on 30 June 2022, the remaining unit is still retained in BPDB's generation portfolio with a registered capacity of 32 MW. Though it is still included in BPDB’s generation portfolio, the power plant generated electricity for only one day during FY 2023–24 and has not produced any electricity since then. This prolonged operational failure and extremely low generation performance have raised criticism regarding the inefficient utilization of public assets and the continued retention of non-performing capacity within the national power system. 


References

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