India's Reliance Inks Bangladesh Deals
India's Reliance Power has executed project agreements with Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) for the first phase of a 750 MW combined-cycle power project at Meghnaghat, near Bangladesh's capital Dhaka, which include power purchase agreement (PPA) and implementation agreement (IA), the Indian company said April 10.
Phase one will have an investment outlay of $1bn financed under consideration of Asian Development Bank (ADB) and a consortium of lenders. The power project will run primarily on regasified LNG imports.
An MoU has also been signed with state-owned Petrobangla to set up 500mn ft3/d (5.17bn m3/yr) LNG terminal at Kutubdia Island near Chittagong in Bangladesh. The definitive agreements for setting up the LNG terminal will be executed with PetroBangla shortly, according to Relaince Power. Full LNG terminal capacity will be used by PetroBangla to meet huge demand for power and other industries.
The deals were signed in New Delhi in the presence of Bangladesh's prime minister Sheikh Hasina at a business event. Press reports said the total value of deals covering energy, infrastructure, education and medicine signed between both countries April 10 was around $10bn.
Reliance Power had signed an initial agreement in June 2015 with the BPDB, Government of Bangladesh to set up the integrated project, during the visit of Indian prime minister Narendra Modi’s to Dhaka.
Bangladesh is facing significant shortfall of natural gas amid rising demand for energy. In the last one year, the government of Bangladesh has signed multiple agreements to set up LNG import terminals.
Shardul Sharma