Banshkhali 1320 MW (SSPL) Coal Power Plant

Current Status: Construction

The Banshkhali Coal Power Plant is owned by Bangladeshi conglomerate S. Alam Group and  and SEPCO III Electric Power Construction Corporation along with HTG Development Group, China. It is a project under China's ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) [23]. As per the report from local land office, S. Alam Group had bought 660.40 acres of land to set up Genesis Textile and Apparels Limited and S. Alam Vegetable Oil Limited, two subsidiaries of S. Alam Group [1]. 5 protesters of the power plant were killed by police and goons from April 2016 to February 2017. The group received a tax exemption of BDT 32.71 billion (USD 382.03 million) from Bangladesh Government in February 2019 [11]. As per the Power Purchasing Agreement (PPA), the expected Commercial Operation Date (COD) of the power plant was 16 November 2019 but the sponsors couldn't complete the construction works. As a result the project proponent has paid a penalty of BDT 2.00 billion (USD 24 million) on 12 July 2020 and received an extension of 2 years up to December 2022 [2].

The villagers of Gandamara stood against the land acquisition from the very beginning. At least 4 people shot dead on 5 April 2016 when they were protesting against the power plant [12]. Another villager was killed on 3 February 2017 [13]. At least five people were killed and numerous others were injured when the police started shooting the workers while they were staging protests over several demands including payment of due wages [14]. 2 more workers died in the hospital on 20 and 21 April 2021. Several times, goons shot the local villagers who were protesting against the coal power plant [16]. The Banshkhali Police arrested Mr. Shahnewaz Chowdhury, who is an engineer and resident of Gondamara Union, under controversial Digital Security Act 2018 for criticizing the power plant [22].

The people killed:

  1. Mortuza Ali (52), son of Ashraf Ali, Banshkhali, Chattogram: 4 April 2016 [17]
  2. Anwar Ali Ankur (45) son of Ashraf Ali, Banshkhali, Chattogram: 4 April 2016 [17]
  3. Zaker Ahmed (35), son of Noor Ahmed, Banshkhali, Chattogram: 4 April 2016 [17]
  4. Mohammad Zahir Ahmed (55), Banshkhali, Chattogram: 4 April 2016 [17]
  5. Mohammad Ali (35), Banshkhali, Chattogram: 1 February 2017 [15]
  6. Mahmud Reza Mir (18), son of Abu Siddique and Noorain Jannat, Purba Baraghona, Banshkhali, Chattogram: 17 April 2021 [18]
  7. Rony Hossain (22), son of Waliullah, Chuadanga: 17 April 2021 [18]
  8. Mahmud Hassan Rahat (22), son of Faruq Ahmed, Kishoreganj: 17 April 2021 [18]
  9. Shuvo (24), son of Nazrul Islam, Chandpur: 17 April 2021 [18]
  10. Raihan Hossain (17), son of Abdul Matin, Noakhali: 17 April 2021 [18]
  11. Raziul Islam Reza (25), son of Abdul Mannan, Nathan Jamdani village, Phulbari, Dinajpur: 20 April 2021 [20]
  12. Shimul Ahmed Babu (19), on of Abdul Khaliq, Baraitala, Sreemangal, Moulvibazar: 21 April 2021 [21]

Basic Information 

  • Name of the Power Plant: SS Power I Limited
  • Alternative Names: Banshkhali (SS Power) Coal Fired Power Plant, Banshkhali (S Alam) Coal Power Plant, Chittagong (S. Alam) Coal Power Plant, Banshkhali Coal-fired Power Station (S. Alam), Gondamara Coal Power Plant, Banshkhali (SSPL) Coal Power Station, S. Alam Banshkhali Power Plant
  • Current Status: Construction
  • Type of Entity: IPP (Independent Power Producer)
  • Ownership: Private
  • Basis of Ownership: BOO (Build-Operate-Own)
  • ESS Category: A
  • ECR Category: Red
  • Number of Units: 2
  • Installed Capacity: 1320 MW [3] 
  • Derated Capacity: 1224 MW [4] 
  • Current Capacity: Not Applicable
  • Base Tariff (kWh): BDT 6.11 [5] 
  • Base Tariff (kWh): USD 0.08259 [6]

Location
  • Address: Gondamara, Purba Baraghona and Poshchim Baraghona village, Gondamara Union, Sub-district: Banshkhali, District: Chittagong
  • Geographic Position: On the bank of Sandwip Channel of the Bay of Bengal, 12 km (9.8 km areal) west from  Banskhali Eco Park, 59 km (38 km areal) south from Chittagong Seaport, 92 km (61.5 km areal) north from Cox’s Bazar, 432 km southeast from Dhaka city.
  • Coordinates: 21.9706, 91.8891

Land & Communities
  • Land Size: 660.40 Acres [1]
  • Land Owner: Local Farmer and Fishermen
  • Affected Communities: Farmer, Agricultural Labour, Fishermen
  • Directly Affected: 7,100
  • Indirectly Affected: 30,000

Fuel & Technology
  • Primary Fuel: Coal
  • Support Fuel: Heavy Fuel Oil (HFO)
  • Fuel Source-1: Australia [6]
  • Fuel Source-2: Indonesia [6] 
  • Fuel Source-3: South Africa [6] 
  • Fuel Requirement (Annual): 4.2 Million Tonnes
  • Fuel Requirement (Lifetime): 126 Million Tonnes
  • Technology: Ultra Supercritical (USC)

Executing Agencies
  • Operator: S.S. Power I Limited (SSPL) [24]
  • Sponsor-1: Genesis Textile and Apparels Limited: 13%
  • Sponsor-2: S. Alam Cement Limited: 11%
  • Sponsor-3: S. Alam Steels Limited: 11%
  • Sponsor: 4: S. Alam Super Edible Oil Limited: 11%
  • Sponsor-5: S. Alam Vegetable Oil Limited: 13%
  • Sponsor-6: Sonali Cargo Logistics Limited: 11%
  •     Parent: S. Alam Group: 70% [2]
  • Sponsor-7: SEPCO3 (SEPCOIII Electric Power Construction Corporation): 20% [5]
  •     Parent: PowerChina (Power Construction Corporation of China Limited)
  • Sponsor-8: HTGDG (HTG Development Group Company Limited): 10% [2]
  • Energy Buyer: BPDB (Bangladesh Power Development Board)

Financing 
  • Total Budget: USD 2,510.2 Million [7]
  • Total Expenditure: 2,487.87 Million
  • Sponsors' Investment: 728.80 Million
  •     S. Alam Group:  USD 510.16 Million
  •     SEPCOIII Electric Power Construction Corporation (SEPCO3): USD 145.76 Million 
  •     HTG Development Group: USD 72.88 Million
  • Domestic Loan: Undisclosed
  •     Rupali Bank Limited: Undisclosed [7]
  • Overseas Loan: USD 1,759.07 Million (70.71%) [7]
  •     Bank of China Limited (BOC): Lead Arranger: Undisclosed [3] 
  •     China Development Bank (CDB): Undisclosed [7]
  •     China Construction Bank (CCB): Undisclosed [3]
  •     CHEXIM (Export-Import Bank of China): Undisclosed [3] 
  •     ABC (Agricultural Bank of China): Undisclosed  [7]
  •     CMB (China Merchants Bank): Undisclosed [3] 
  •     PAB (Ping An Bank): Undisclosed [3] 
  • Grants: None
  • GOB Investment: 4.2 million
  •     Construction: None
  •     Evacuation/Substation: Undisclosed
  •     Land Acquisition: None
  •     Support Infrastructure: 4.2 million

Contractors
  • EPC Contractor: SEPCO3 (SEPCOIII Electric Power Construction Company Limited) [3] 
  •     Parent: PowerChina (Power Construction Corporation of China Limited)
  •     Subcontractor: S.A. Enterprise
  • Building Construction: Zan Zejan Company Limited
  • Civil Engineering: 
  •     Subcontractors: Adiba Enterprise, Bangladesh [19]
  • Conveyor Belt: Undisclosed
  • Evacuation/Transmission: Undisclosed
  • Fuel Transport: Undisclosed
  • Jetty Construction: Undisclosed
  • River Dredging: Undisclosed
  • Land Development: NSN Consortium Limited
  • O&M Contractor: Huafengweiye Electric Power Technology Engineering Company Limited (HEPTEC)
  •     Parent: SEPCO3 (SEPCOIII Electric Power Construction Corporation)
  •         Parent: PowerChina (Power Construction Corporation of China Limited)
  • Financial Adviser: Deloitte & Touche Financial Advisory Services Limited
  • Insurer: China Export & Credit Insurance Corporation (Sinosure) [7] 
  • Insurance Advisor: Marsh India Insurance Brokers Private Limited

Suppliers 
  • Alternator Supplier: Undisclosed
  • Boiler Supplier: Hebei Electric Power Equipment Company Limited (HEPEC)
  • Engine Supplier: Undisclosed
  • Equipment Supplier: Fujian New Choice Pipe Technology Company Limited
  • Fuel Supplier-1: GIAG (Glencore International AG), Switzerland
  • Fuel Supplier-2: PTBR (PT Bayan Resources TBK), Indonesia
  • Fuel Supplier-3: APGMEL (APG Mining & Engineering Limited), Australia
  • Gas Turbine Supplier: Undisclosed
  • Generator Suppler: Sinohydro Foundation Engineering Company Limited
  • Hydro Turbine Supplier: Not Applicable
  • Labour Supplier-1: Mahi Enterprise
  • Labour Supplier-2: Ujjal Enterprise
  • Labour Supplier-3: Adiba Enterprise
  • Labour Supplier-4: NRM Enterprise
  • Labour Supplier-5: Rakib Enterprise
  • Labour Supplier-6: Ali Enterprise
  • Labour Supplier-7: Ema Enterprise
  • Module Supplier: Not Applicable
  • Steam Turbine Supplier: Qingdao Huafengweiye Electric Power Technology Engineering Company Limited
  • Wind Turbine Supplier: Not Applicable

Consultants 
  • EIA Consultant: CEGIS (Centre for Environmental and Geographic Information Services) [6] 
  • EIA for Jetty Construction: Zebec Marine Consultants and Services Private Limited
  • EMP Monitoring: EECS (Elevate Environmental Consulting Services) [9] 
  •     Parent: ITGBD (ISO Tech Group), Bangladesh
  • Owner's Engineer: Lahmeyer international (India) Private Limited
  • Feasibility Study: QEPEC (Qingdao Hongrui Electric Power Engineering Consulting Company Limited), China [10] 
  • Geotechnical Investigation and Topographical Survey: TPF CETEST Bangladesh Limited
  •     Parent: CE Testing Company Private Limited (CETEST), India
  •     Parent: TPF SA, Belgium
  • Legal Adviser: Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP
  • Owner's Engineer: Undisclosed
  • Resettlement Consultant: Undisclosed

Timeline 
  • MOU Signed with Sponsors: 7 March 2013 
  • Letter of Intent (LOI): 31 October 2013 [2]
  • Agreement with Sponsor-1: December 2013 [5]
  • EIA Report Submitted: 18 August 2015 [6]
  • EIA Report Approved: Undisclosed
  • PPA Signed: 16 February 2016 [6] 
  • EPC Contract Signed: 15 March 2016 [3] 
  • Agreement with Sponsor-2: 14 October 2016 [7]
  • MOU Signed with Bangladesh Navy: 5 August 2016 
  • Construction Started: 14 October 2016 
  • MOU Signed with O&M Contractor: 10 April 2017 
  • Construction Period: 45 Months [5] 
  • COD (Expected): 16 November 2019
  • COD (Extended): December 2022 [2]
  • COD (Actual): Not Applicable
  • Lifetime: 30 Years [3] 
  • Phase Out: December 2052

References
  1. Mustafa, Kallol (2016). "Banshkhali Coal Power Plant Propaganda and Reality". The Daily Star, Dhaka: 13 April 2016. Archived: https://energy-archive.blogspot.com/2020/12/banshkhali-coal-power-plant-propaganda.html 
  2. Rahman, M. Azizur (2020). "1224 MW power plant at Banskhali: S Alam Group pays Tk 2.0 b as penalty for delay". The Financial Express: 13 July 2020. Archived: https://energy-archive.blogspot.com/2021/01/1224mw-power-plant-at-banskhali-s-alam.html 
  3. PowerChina (2018). “PowerChina's Bangladesh power plant makes progress”. PowerChina: 17 December 2018. Archived: https://energy-archive.blogspot.com/2021/04/power-chinas-bangladesh-power-plant.html 
  4. Market Forces (2019). Choked by Coal: The Carbon Catastrophe in Bangladesh. 350.org, Bangladesh Poribesh Andolan (BAPA), Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB), Waterkeepers Bangladesh and Market Forces, Victoria: November 2019. p 17. Retrieved from https://www.marketforces.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Choked-by-Coal_The-Carbon-Catastrophe-in-Bangladesh-FULL.pdf accessed on 13 March 2020 
  5. Daily Star (2013). “S Alam Group teams up with Chinese firm for a coal power plant”. The Daily Star: 20 December 2013. Archived: https://energy-archive.blogspot.com/2021/04/s-alam-group-teams-up-with-chinese-firm.html 
  6. Independent (2016). "Deal signed for $2.5 billion project". The Independent, Dhaka: 17 February 2016. Archived: https://energy-archive.blogspot.com/2021/04/deal-signed-for-25-billion-project.html
  7. ICBC (2019). "Supercritical Coal-fired Power Project in Chittagong Bangladesh". Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), Beijing: undated. Archived: https://energy-archive.blogspot.com/2021/04/supercritical-coal-fired-power-project.html 
  8. Kotra (2017). "Bangladesh, Current Status of Large Energy-related Projects". Kotra News, Korea: 10 April 2017. Retrieved from http://news.kotra.or.kr/user/globalAllBbs/kotranews/album/2/globalBbsDataAllView.do?dataIdx=157987 accessed on 11 March 2020
  9. EECS (2020). "Environmental and Compliance Monitoring Study for 2 x 660 MW Coal-based Supercritical Thermal Power Project at Banshkhali, Chattogram District". Elevate Environmental Consulting Services (EECS), Dhaka: Undated. Retrieved from http://www.eecsbd.com/Call_controller/projectDetails/4 accessed on 11 November 2020
  10. Zawya (2019). "1320 MW S. Alam Coal Fired Power Plant Project". Zawya, Dubai: 15 January 2019. Archived: https://energy-archive.blogspot.com/2021/04/1320-mw-salam-coal-fired-power-plant.html
  11. New Nation (2019). "Tk 3170.87 cr duty exemption for S. Alam Group". The New Nation, Dhaka: 21 February 2019. Retrieved from http://m.thedailynewnation.com/news/207046/tk-317087-cr-duty-exemption-for-s-alam-group accessed on 23 February 2019
  12. BBC (2016). "Bangladesh power plant protest: Four dead and three held". BBC News: 5 April 2016. Archived: https://energy-archive.blogspot.com/2021/01/bangladesh-power-plant-protest-four.html
  13. Bdnews24.com (2017). "One killed in clashes at Banshkhali thermal power project discussion". The bdnews24.com: 2 February 2017. Archived: https://energy-archive.blogspot.com/2021/04/one-killed-in-clashes-at-banshkhali.html
  14. BWGED (2021). "Civil Society Statement on the Killing of 5 Workers at Banshkhali Coal Power Plant". Bangladesh Working Group on External Debt (BWGED): 17 April 2021. Archived: https://bwged.blogspot.com/2021/04/civil-society-statement-on-killing-of-5.html
  15. Hussain, Anwar (2017). "Banshkhali clash: 200 unnamed accused in homicide case". The Dhaka Tribune: 3 February 2017. Archived: https://energy-archive.blogspot.com/2021/04/banshkhali-clash-200-unnamed-accused-in.html
  16. Jugantor (2016). "বাঁশখালীতে কয়লা বিদ্যুৎ প্রকল্পবিরোধী মিছিলে গুলি ". The Jugantor: 19 March 2016. Archived: https://energy-archive.blogspot.com/2021/04/open-short-to-protesters-of-banshkhali.html
  17. Ittefaq (2016). "কয়লা প্রকল্প নিয়ে সংঘর্ষ, ‘পুলিশের গুলিতে’ নিহত ৪". The Daily Ittefaq: 5 April 2016. Archived: https://energy-archive.blogspot.com/2021/04/clash-on-coal-project-police-shot.html
  18. Daily Sun (2021). "Five killed as police, workers clash in Ctg". The Daily Sun: 17 April 2021. Archived: https://energy-archive.blogspot.com/2021/04/five-killed-as-police-workers-clash-in.html
  19. Bdnews24.com (2021). "বাঁশখালীতে সংঘাত: আন্দোলন চলছিল কয়েকদিন ধরেই". The bdnews24.com: 18 April 2021. Archived: https://energy-archive.blogspot.com/2021/04/banshkhali-killing-movement-started-few.html
  20. Daily Star (2021). "Police firing at Banshkhali power plant: Another bullet-hit employee dies, say family members". The Daily Star: 21 April 2021. Archived: https://energy-archive.blogspot.com/2021/04/police-firing-at-banshkhali-power-plant.html
  21. TBS (2021). "Death toll rises to 7 in Banshkhali power plant clash". The Business Standard: 21 April 2021. Archived: https://energy-archive.blogspot.com/2021/04/death-toll-rises-to-7-in-banshkhali.html
  22. Daily Star (2021). "কয়লা বিদ্যুৎকেন্দ্র নিয়ে ফেসবুকে পোস্ট: ডিজিটাল নিরাপত্তা আইনে প্রকৌশলী কারাগারে". The Daily Star: 30 May 2021. Archived: https://energy-archive.blogspot.com/2021/05/post-on-coal-power-plant-engineer.html
  23. PowerChina (2018). "Power China-funded S. Alam power plant project unveiled". Power Construction Corporation of China Limited (PowerChina): 14 December 2018. Archived: https://energy-archive.blogspot.com/2021/04/power-china-funded-s-alam-power-plant.html
  24. S. Alam (2021). SS Power I Limited. S. Alam Group: undated. Link: http://www.s.alamgroupbd.com/sag_Compa_PnE_d.php
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