Sept 23: Amid political uncertainty in Bangladesh, Adani Power is evaluating options to sell electricity within India. This comes amid an indication from the interim government in Dhaka that it may review its 2017 agreement with the company, the Indian Express reported on Monday.
At present, Adani Power's Godda thermal power plant, in Jharkhand supplies the entire power to Bangladesh. The 1600 MW plant has received an approval for a connection to the Indian grid via a substation in Bihar's Lakhisarai.
However, to connect to the Indian grid, the company will have to first build a 130-km transmission line, which could take 'considerable time', according to Adani Power. Adani Power's request for a faster connection via a nearby substation in Banka (30 km away) was rejected by the Central Transmission Utility of India Ltd (CTUIL) due to technical limitations, according to the report. CTUIL serves as the national authority for transmission planning.
The news report, citing a August 21 meeting minutes, also said that days after two Mohammad Yunus were sworn in as Chief Adviser of Bangladesh, the Centre had recommended connectivity for the Godda plant on August 10, citing "emerging geopolitical tensions in Bangladesh and outstanding payment dues. Four days prior to that, Adani Power had informed the power ministry that supplying power to India would be "beneficial" during low demand or geopolitical issues affecting Bangladesh.
On August 12, the power ministry amended the Guidelines for Import/Export (Cross Border) of Electricity, allowing domestic plants exclusively supplying power to neighbouring countries - currently only Adani's Godda plant - to sell power within India. It also directed regulatory bodies to draft a standard operating procedure for granting connectivity to such plants.
The CTUIL approved the connectivity proposal for Adani's Godda plant to the Lakhisarai substation on August 21, requiring the company to meet technical requirements. In the same meeting, Adani Power had highlighted that it would take "considerable time" to implement this proposal and suggested an interim connection to the closer Banka substation, which was rejected, the report added.
The Godda plant started supplying power to Bangladesh in April 2023. Earlier, the Adani Power had warned Bangladesh's interim government that its $500 million backlog in unpaid dues from the plant was becoming 'unsustainable'. —Business Standard (India)
