Phulbari Coal Project (Sinohydro)
{{#badges:CoalSwarm|Template:Navbar-BangladeshCoal}}Phulbari Coal Project (Sinohydro) is a proposed 4,000-megawatt (MW) coal-fired power station in Rangpur division, Bangladesh.
Also proposed for the location is the 2,000 MW Phulbari Coal Project (China Gezhouba).
The Phulbari Coal Project (Asia Energy) is an old 1,000 MW proposal for the location, by the same company, that was cancelled.
Contents
Location
The map below shows the location of Phulbari upazila, the approximate location of the project, in Dinajpur district, Rangpur division.
Background
GCM Resources, formerly Asia Energy Corporation, is a British company established with the sole purpose of building a coal mine and power plant in Phulbari. The company, as Asia Energy, had an earlier proposal for a mine and power plant in the 2000's (see Phulbari Coal Project (Asia Energy)). That proposal was met with considerable resistance, with three people having been killed and more than 200 injured by police in a public protest against the proposal in August 2006.
In September 2018 GCM Resources announced that China's Sinohydro Corporation (of Chinese engineering and construction firm PowerChina) will undertake a pre-feasibility study for a 4,000 MW Phulbari mine-mouth power plant. GCM has stated that this is a separate proposal from the earlier 2,000-MW proposal with China Energy Engineering Corporation's China Gezhouba, the Phulbari Coal Project (China Gezhouba).[1] A report released in November 2018 concluded that the proposed Phulbari coal mine could power 6,000 MW of coal plants.[2]
In January 2019 GCM Resources signed a joint venture agreement and EPC contract with PowerChina for the proposed development of two 1,000-MW mine-mouth coal-fired power units with an approximate investment of US$4 billion.[3][4] In March 2019, GCM signed a second Joint Venture Agreement with PowerChina in relation to the second phase (2 x 1,000MW units).[5]
According to the GCM Resources 2019 Annual Report, "PowerChina has seen feasibility studies and proposals for the 4,000MW Phases I and II completed." Additionally: "The arrangements with PowerChina also carry an obligation to conduct any required power plant feasibility studies, facilitate the inclusion of the Project in the ‘One Belt, One Road Initiative’ of the People’s Republic of China, and assist with financing the power plants."[6]
In July 2019, GCM Resources announced it had entered into a bilateral agreement with China Nonferrous Metal Industry and Power Construction Corporation of China (PowerChina) to jointly manage the Phulbari Coal Mine project.[7]
Protests
In December 2018, protesters with Phulbari Solidarity Group, Extinction Rebellion, and Reclaim the Power blocked the entrance to GCM Resources' shareholder meeting in London, in a protest against the proposed project.[8]
Project Details
- Sponsor: GCM Resources, PowerChina
- Parent company: GCM Resources
- Location: Phulbari upazila, Dinajpur district, Rangpur division, Bangladesh
- Coordinates: 25.516667, 88.883333 (approximate)
- Status: Announced
- Gross Capacity: 4,000 MW (Units 1-4: 1,000-MW units)
- Type: Ultra-supercritical
- Projected in service:
- Coal Type:
- Coal Source: GCM Phulbari mine (undeveloped)
- Source of financing:
Articles and Resources
Sources
- ↑ "Prefeasibility Study for Further Mine-Mouth Power Plants," GCM, Sep 11, 2018
- ↑ "GCM Resources receives power plant pre-feasibility assessment ">GCM Resources receives power plant pre-feasibility assessment," World Coal, November 6, 2018
- ↑ "GCM and POWERCHINA Inks US$4bn Power Deal," Energy Bangla, January 17, 2019
- ↑ GCM, POWERCHINA to develop $4bn coal-fired power project in Bangladesh, Mining & Quarry World, 21 Jan. 2019.
- ↑ GCM Resources, PowerChina ink 2nd coal-fired power plant JV deal at Phulbari, S&P Global, 15 Mar. 2019.
- ↑ Annual Report and Accounts 2019, GCM Resources, 2019
- ↑ "GCM Resources signs agreement to develop its Phulbari Coal Mine," Vox Markets, July 11, 2019
- ↑ Environmental activists confront coal-mining executives at shareholders' meeting in London, Morning Star, 28 Dec. 2018.
