Second unit of Payra power plant to stop production after 2 June due to coal shortage
The second unit of the Payra thermal power plant will have to stop production soon due to a shortage of coal supply, said Bangladesh-China Power Company (Pvt) Limited (BCPCL) Managing Director Engineer AM Khurshedul Alam.
"We couldn't clear the bills for coal supply due to LC issues that arose from the dollar crisis. The first unit halted production on 25 May. The second unit will also have to halt production after 2 June. We are working to resolve the matter," he said.
"It will take 25 days after the opening of LC for the coal to reach the plant. If we can open LCs for the coal bills, then we can hope to resume production at the first unit from 25 June," he added.
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This is the first time that the Payra power plant is shutting down completely since it came into production three years ago.
Earlier, Bagerhat's Rampal power plant was shut down twice due to fuel shortage. However, the power plant is active now.
The two units of the Payra power plant have a combined production capacity of 1,320 MW. It was supplying more than 1,200 megawatts of electricity per day.
One unit was shut down on 25 May due to a lack of coal. Now 450 MW per day is being produced from the remaining unit of 660 MW capacity. Officials said it can continue till 2 June. After that, the entire production may stop for about a month from 3 June.
