United News of Bangladesh

A fire broke out at the Ghorashal Thermal Power Plant in Polash upazila of Narsingdi early Thursday, damaging a transformer and disrupting power supply for several hours. Abdul Shahid, senior station officer of Polash Fire Service, said the fire originated in the 132/33 KV transformer around 4:30 am. Two fire service units reached the spot at about 5 am and doused the flames after nearly an hour of efforts. “The transformer was completely burnt,” Shahid said, adding that the fire might have been caused by a short circuit. The exact cause will be ascertained after an investigation. Ghorashal Thermal Power Plant shut for 2.5 months Following the fire, electricity supply remained suspended in Polash upazila and neighbouring Kaliganj until around 9 am. Power was gradually restored in different areas by 9:30 am. Efforts to reach chief engineer Enamul Haque for comment were unsuccessful, as he disconnected the call requesting to be contacted later.

Power generation at the 1,105-megawatt (MW) Ghorashal Thermal Power Plant in Narsingdi has remained suspended for around two and a half months due to multiple factors, including an ongoing gas crisis, according to its Chief Engineer Enamul Haque. Citing the prolonged shortage, he said production stopped at three major units this June -- Unit-5 (210 MW) on June 9, Unit-4 (360 MW) on June 13, and Unit-7 (360 MW) on June 14. The government has diverted gas supply to fertiliser factories, prompting the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources to request alternative supply arrangements for power generation. Enamul Haque said that Units 4, 5 and 7 are mechanically sound and could resume operation immediately once gas becomes available. Earlier in June, Unit-3 (360 MW) went offline after its turbine rotor blades were damaged. Repair work is now in the final stage and the unit will also resume generation once gas supply is ensured. Read: Barapukuria Power Plant shuts down due to mechanical issues Meanwhile, Unit-6 (210 MW) has remained out of operation since June 2010, when a fire destroyed its turbine. Units 1 and 2, commissioned in 1967 and 1976 with 55 MW each, are also non-functional due to recurring mechanical issues. Authorities plan to dismantle these ageing units and replace them with a new facility. Once the country’s first large-scale thermal power plant, Ghorashal is now struggling to contribute to the national grid, leaving an impact on daily production.