Banshkhali power station (S Alam)
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Banshkhali power station (S Alam), also known as the Chittagong or Chattogram power station, is a proposed 1,224-megawatt (MW) coal plant in Chittagong (Chattogram) division, Bangladesh. The project is bring built by SEPCOIII.[1]
Contents
Location
The map below shows the proposed location for the plant in Banshkhali upazila, in Chittagong district, Chittagong division.
Background
In December 2013, S. Alam Group of Bangladesh signed an agreement in Dhaka with China's SEPCOIII Electric Power Construction Corporation to build a 1320 MW coal plant in Chittagong. The cost of the project was estimated at $1.8 billion. The Daily Star reported, "Officials said the new company would sign a separate agreement with state-run Power Development Board, which will mandate the joint venture to complete the construction work in 45 months."[1] It is not clear from the report whether the project will be a formal joint venture involving the Bangladesh Power Development Board, or whether the "joint venture" refers to the agreement signed between S Alam Group and SEPCOIII.
On February 16, 2016, the government of Bangladesh approved the deal and set a price to purchase electricity from the group at a rate of BDT 6.61 per unit. The project was reported to be 2 x 612 MW. The group started to acquire 600 acres of land for this plant. According to Bangladesh's The Daily Star: "Surprisingly, all these steps were taken without any Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and public consultation. There was no environmental clearance."[2] The Bangladesh Post reports the "Power Division approved the project in October 2013."[3]
In April 2016 S Alam group was asked to revise its environmental impact assessment report (EIA) for the project.[4]
In March 2018 it was reported that "The work of this plant was supposed to be completed in 2019, but the construction work has not started yet." According to S Alam Group, site development has begun and financial close was expected soon.[3]
In November 2018, the Bangladesh Power Division warned S Alam Group of annulling the plant's contracts over the delay in financial close. The company was given until December 31, 2018 to complete financial closing of its thermal power plant project.[5] In December 2018 PowerChina said prep work was underway on the project.[6]
The plant is listed in Bangladesh's 2016 Master Plan "Revisited", an updated version of the country's energy plan released in November 2018. It is proposed for commissioning in December 2020 - although the timeline seems unlikely, given the lack of progress through 2018.
Planet satellite photos through September 22, 2019 show construction is underway. Photos from the plant site up to December 2019 show ongoing construction progress.
Public opposition
According to the Daily Star of Bangladesh, the project has been marred by a lack of transparency and irregularities since its inception. Authorities also avoided discussing the full scope of the project's impact: "The local administration had shown a total of only 150 households in the project area, but in reality the area has at least 7,000 households, 70 mosques, graveyards, a technical education institution, around 20 cyclone shelter houses, one high school, eight primary government schools, two Alia Madrassa, five Qawmi Madrassa, five markets, and one government hospital. Hiding the real numbers is a familiar practice to rationalize the project and also to ease the handover of khas (government) land to the private company."[2]
March 2016: Thousands protest plant
On March 23, 2016, 30,000 people gathered demanding the project be shifted elsewhere and their land be returned to them. On April 3, 2016, police arrested seven people from the village, accusing them of obstructing the company's work. In response, on April 4, 2016, locals gathered under the banner of “Boshot Bhita Rokkha Committee” (Committee to Protect Households).[2] Witnesses estimated the the crowd at around 15,000 protesters.[7]
April 2016: Four killed in plant protest
Four people were killed after police opened fire on the protesters. Witnesses said that 100 people were injured. According to local authorities, police claimed that the shootings occurred when protesters attacked them at the "banned" protest.[7] According to the Daily Star, members of a paramilitary group were allegedly paid by the company to break up the event and started firing on the unarmed protesters, with the police eventually joining in the shooting.[2]
The victims included a pair of brothers, according to district police chief Hafiz Akter. In addition to the fatalities, dozens of protests were reported injured, as well as 11 policemen, one of whom was shot in the head. According to Dr. Saiful Islam of Chittagong Medical College Hospital, seven people, including four who were shot by live rounds, were brought to his clinic. According to protest leader Abu Ahmed, "Police opened fire as we brought out a procession against the power plants. They even chased the villagers to their homes."[7]
February 2017: One killed, a dozen injured at Chittagong protest
One person was killed and "about a dozen" were injured at a protest on February 1, 2017 against the S Alam power Chittagong power station. According to Nurul Mostafa, a leader of a citizens group opposing the plant, protesters were chanting slogans when police attacked them.[8][9]
Financing
Two Chinese firms -- SEPCOIII Electric Power and HTG -- are financing US$1.75 billion of the the plants' estimated $2.4 billion cost.[7]
Project Details
- Sponsor: S. Alam Group (70 percent), SEPCOIII (20 percent), STG Development Group (10 percent)[10]
- Parent company:
- Location: Banshkhali upazila, in Chittagong district, Chittagong division
- Coordinates: 21.970844, 91.888932 (exact)
- Status: Construction
- Gross Capacity: 1,224 MW (Units 1-2: 612 MW)
- Type:
- Projected in service:
- Coal Type:
- Coal Source: Indonesia[1]
- Source of financing: SEPCOIII Electric Power and HTG (US$1.75 billion of $2.4 billion cost)
Articles and resources
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "S Alam Group teams up with Chinese firm for coal power plant," The Daily Star, December 20, 2013
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Anu Muhammad, "Scrap projects of destruction," The Daily Star, April 11, 2016
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "No progress in 19 power plants yet," The Bangladesh Post, March 9, 2018
- ↑ "Banshkhali coal-based plant fails to get environmental clearance," energynewsbd.com, May 7, 2016
- ↑ "Power Div warns of scrapping S Alam Gr's coal power plant," FE, November 25, 2018
- ↑ "POWERCHINA's Bangladesh power plant makes progress," PowerChina, 2018-12-17
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 "Four killed an anti-China power plant protest in Bangladesh," The Peninsula, April 5, 2016
- ↑ Serajul Quadir, "One killed in Bangladesh protest against Chinese-backed plant," Reuters, February 2, 2017
- ↑ "Banshkhali coal power station, Chittagong, Bangladesh," EJ Atlas, accessed May 2017
- ↑ "Deal on 1,224MW Banskhali coal power plant," Prothom Alo, February 16, 2016
