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Jan 43 min read

Shahjibazar 50 MW (Energy Prima) DFG Power Plant

Current Status: Operation


(Source: OmniIPO, 2014)


Shahjibazar 50 MW Gas Power Plant, also known as Energy Prima Habiganj Rental Power Plant, is a reciprocating engine-based power plant situated in Shahjibazar under Shahjibazar Sadar Upazila in Habiganj District of Bangladesh (Location: 24.2556, 91.3784). It is sponsored by Energy Prima Limited (EPL), a subsidiary of Hosaf Group, as a Rental Power Plant (RPP) for three years. The sponsor declared its Commercial Operation Date (COD) on 13 November 2008 and, as per schedule, the power plant was to retire on 10 November 2011, but it got an extension of eight years in two terms and rescheduled the date to November 2019.


Capacity

The installed and derated capacity of the power plant is 53 MW and 50 MW respectively.


Context

Energyprima Limited (EPL), a subsidiary of the Hosaf Group, is a leading private sector company in the field of rental power generation in the country. EPL launched a power plant project with a capacity of 50 MW in Shahjibazar, which became operational using advanced Caterpillar gas engines. This facility has effectively generated around 50 MW of electric power and seamlessly integrated it into the national grid  (Hosaf Group, 2016). The PPA of the powerplant was  signed on 16 January 2008 (NP, 2008) and began its commercial operation on 13 November, 2008 (FE, 2018).  It was scheduled to retire on   10 November 2011 but it was extended in August 2011 for four years. The power plant was extended again on 8 April 2015 for three years more (EB, 2015).  The government might have decided in favor of granting extensions of two more years to two additional gas-fired rental power plants which was criticized by the experts  (FE, 2018).


Land Acquisition

The land area of this power plant is approx. 2.64 acres (Calculated via Google Earth)


Finance

No data has been found.


Sponsor

The sponsor of this powerplant is Energy Prima  Ltd., a subsidiary of Hosaf Group.


Contractor

The EPC contractor of the project was supposed to provided by Hosaf group. (Hosaf Group, 2016). 


Fuel Supply

Domestic fossil gas has been used as the fuel of the power plant. Petrobangla is the fuel supplier of the power plant.


Power Generation

Its Commercial Operation started on  11 November 2008 and a total of 3,095.76 gWh power had been generated till 2019-20. 


Environment

Domestic fossil gas (DFG), predominantly composed of methane but potentially containing other hydrocarbons, is classified as a fossil fuel. When utilized for electricity generation, it emits detrimental pollutants like CO2, NOx, CO, VOCs, and PM, which can have adverse impacts on human health and contribute to air pollution. NOx can result in respiratory issues, CO affects the circulation of oxygen, VOCs are linked to various health problems, and ozone formation is possible. Particulate matter, specifically PM2.5, is especially harmful and has been associated with lung cancer and heart disease. It is a cause for concern that there is no Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report available for this power plant. It's crucial to mention that reciprocating power plants, which are less efficient and more environmentally damaging compared to combined cycle plants for electricity generation, should also be taken into account. Given the carbon emissions associated with natural gas, it is imperative to institute a carbon tax. Shifting from natural gas to renewable energy sources in the near future would represent a more environmentally responsible decision.


Criticism

Since the Shahjibazar power plant did not require extra capital investments or certain other expenses, many experts in the power business contend that the government might have saved more money through better negotiating techniques. They were surprised that the government continued to prolong the contracts for pricey rental power plants even after they had been installed for ten years (FE, 2018).


Capacity Charge

According to a report of the Daily Share Biz, Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) had to pay USD 466.67 (BDT 33,133.57 when USD 1=BDT 71) to EPL as capacity charge per day (Ali 2020). BPDB had to pay the sponsor a total of BDT 758.86 crore capacity charge till FY 2019-2020. Total generation was 3,095.76 gWh and per unit cost was 3.47 BDT until FY 2019-2020. 



References

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