Summit To Work with Excelerate, GE on $1bn Bangladesh Project

Bangladeshi Summit Group member Summit Power International plans to invest $1bn in a collaboration with turbine-maker giant GE and floating LNG terminals provider Excelerate Energy, both of the US, to develop gas-to-power generation and an offshore LNG import terminal in Bangladesh, said Summit on August 4. 

IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, has been engaged as the lead arranger for financing to develop the Meghnaghat II natural gas-based combined cycle power plant. Upon completion, Summit will have a total installed generating capacity of over 3 GW. And, Summit will be chartering a floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) from Excelerate Energy for LNG storage and regasification services, it said.

GE, through GE Capital’s Energy Financial Services, and Summit have entered into a memorandum of understanding for GE to potentially provide $50mn of equity to Summit, to be used for the development of the power projects in Bangladesh. In addition, GE Gas Power Systems will have rights to supply equipment for the power projects based on gas turbine technology, which are to be developed in the next 36 months by Summit.

To make gas available for these projects, Summit LNG Terminal Company will sign the FSRU time charter party agreement for 15 years with Excelerate Energy. The agreement is for the provision of one of Excelerate’s existing FSRUs, Summit said.

In January this year, Summit Group signed an initial agreement with Bangladesh state-owned energy company Petrobangla to build a floating LNG terminal at Moheshkhali Island, offshore from Cox’s Bazaar, near the industrial Chittagong region. Also, Petrobangla and Excelerate signed a separate agreement last year under which latter would build and operate a floating terminal, also in Moheshkhali.

Shardul Sharma