Gas shortage dropping 9 power generation project

The government has dropped nine power plants with a combined generation capacity of 1800 megawatt (MW) from its short and medium term plans due to gas supply shortage in the country, as said by official sources of Power Division on February 23.

The government earlier took up plans for installation of 45 power plants to supply an additional 6245 MW power to the national grid by 2012. All these plants would need 1233 million cubic feet of gas per day (MMCFD).

The official sources said that at a coordination meeting with the Petrobangla recently, Power Development Board (PDB), Rural Electrification Board (REB) and Power Cell recently, they have revised their plan and decided to drop the nine projects where gas will not be available by 2012.

At the coordination meeting, Petrobangla, a state-owned oil, gas and mineral resources corporation, said it would not be able to supply gas to the proposed nine power plants for shortage of gas production.

The Petrobangla assured the Power Division that Petrobangla will supply necessary 889 MMCFD of gas by 2012 to its 36 small and large power plants, which will generate 4445MW electricity.

Following the severe power shortage and its growing demand in the country, the caretaker government has given highest priority to the generation of electricity to overcome the situation.

Under the plan, it has decided to set up 17 power plants with generation capacity of 3775MW in the public sector, 1840MW capacity five plants in the private sector, 410MW 13 rental power plants in the private sector and 220MW 10 small power plants in the private sector from 2007- 2012 period.

According to the Petrobangla forecast, the existing proven gas reserve will exhaust by 2012 and the probable reserve by 2015.Now all the gas fields in the country produce around 1700MMCFD of gas against the demand for more than 1800MMCFD.

About 90 per cent power plants of the country are now operated by natural gas.

23rd February,2008