The Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) and China Huadian Corp. have agreed to install 160 MW of PV in Bangladesh. The solar facility will be deployed in an area that was originally designated to host a coal power plant.
From PV MAGAZINE
The Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) and China Huadian Corp. have agreed to install 160 MW of PV in Bangladesh. The solar facility will be deployed in an area that was originally designated to host a coal power plant.
The BPDB and China Huadian will jointly build a 160 MW solar plant in Maheshkhali, Moheshkhali Peninsula, in Bangladesh's Cox's Bazar district.
“The solar power plant will be built by Bay of Bengal Power Co. Ltd., a joint venture between BPDP and China Huadian,” A. Zihad Mahmud, an executive engineer at the BPDB, told pv magazine. “We have recently invited international tender seeking EPC contractor for design, supply, installation, testing, and commissioning of the power plant.”
The plant will occupy a surface of 150 hectares that was originally designated to host a 1,320 MW coal power plant. It will be financed with both equity and bank loans.
The Moheshkhali Peninsula is a hub of coal power plants where the government is also building a deep sea port and a coal jetty to facilitate coal transport for power generation. Several coal-fired power plants are still under construction there.
Power-hungry Bangladesh approved 2.19 GW of large-scale PV projects in 2023. This increase was due to new measures that were recently introduced to help domestic independent power producers build and operate new renewable energy plants.