Five security personnel, including two Ansar members, at the Rampal Coal-Fired Thermal Power Plant sustained injuries following a “robbery attempt” by a group of assailants on Wednesday night. The injured are Akram, Saidul Islam, Mintu Bouragi, Brazen Mandal and Habi Kamal Pasha. The power plant’s Deputy General Manager Anwarul Azim said approximately 50-60 armed individuals attempted to infiltrate residential areas of the power plant around 11:30 pm. When the security personnel tried to thwart their entry, the armed men attacked them, resulting in injuries. Of the injured, two were urgently transported to Khulna Medical College and Hospital for medical attention, while the remaining three received treatment at the Rampal Upazila Health Complex, said the DGM. Somen Das, the officer-in-charge of Rampal Police Station, confirmed that law enforcement agencies are actively pursuing leads to identify and apprehend the culprits. As a precautionary measure, additional police forces have been deployed to secure the power plant and its surrounding areas, aiming to prevent further incidents and ensure the safety of the plant's personnel and infrastructure. Bagerhat Superintendent of Police (SP) Abul Hasnat Khan said the Ansar members of the power plant opened 30 rounds of bullets to deter the robbers. In the firing one of the robbers sustained injuries, he said, adding that they have already arrested 11suspects. The arrestees are being interrogated at Rampal police station and drives are on to arrest others, the SP said.

The first unit of Rampal coal-fired power plant was shut down again due to the coal shortage early Sunday that triggered load shedding across the country. According to official sources at the Bangladesh-India Friendship Power Company Limited (BIFPCL), the operation of the first unit, having 620 MW capacity, came to halt at 3:30 am as there was no adequate coal available in the stock. The BIFPCL officials said they have already completed all necessary procedures to import coal from abroad. “We hope, if everything remains as usual, the plant will resume power generation after the arrival of the imported coal on August 8. Rampal Power Plant shut down for maintenance Earlier, the Rampal thermal power plant was shut down five times in seven months after it was commissioned on December 17 last year and the last outage happened on July 16 due to a technical fault at its turbine. After the repair of the turbine, production resumed on July 20. 26,620 mts of coal for Rampal Power plant arrives at Mongla  As the power production in the first unit of the power plant was shut repeatedly, the experts in the power sector expressed dismay about the start of commercial production of the second unit. Meanwhile, available statistics show that the country experienced about 1,153 MW of load shedding at 5 pm on Sunday though Dhaka city was out of the scheduled power outage. The country generated 12,993 MW of electricity in the afternoon against a demand for 14,200 MW, the PGCB officials said. Rampal electricity cost nearly doubles due to high coal price, increased dollar rate “Mainly, the rural areas in the country suffered from the power outages”, said an official of the PGCB. He apprehends the gap between power supply and demand may increase during the peak hours.

Power production at Rampal Thermal Power Plant in Bagerhat district has been suspended since Friday night due to maintenance work. Syed Ekramullah, Managing Director of Bangladesh India Friendship Power Company (BIFPCL), said the energy production at the power plant halted at 8:45 pm on Friday due to inspection and maintenance work. “We have suspended the production due to maintenance, inspection work and technical glitch from June 30 night and we’ll try to resume the production on June 4,5 or 6,” he said. 26,620 mts of coal for Rampal Power plant arrives at Mongla  Talking about the coal situation, Ekramullah said there is plenty of coal and a huge quantity of coal will arrive on June 5 by ship. The 1320 MW coal-fired power plant has been set up at a cost of approximately USD 2 billion and is located in Rampal, in the Bagerhat district under Khulna division of Bangladesh. Rampal electricity cost nearly doubles due to high coal price, increased dollar rate The Maitree Super Thermal Power Project was constructed under the Indian government’s concessional financing scheme. On September 6, 2022, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi jointly unveiled unit-1 of the power plant. Dollar crisis casts a shadow over operation of Rampal coal-fired power plant

A ship carrying 26,620 mts of coal for the Rampal Thermal Power Plant in Bagerhat arrived here from Indonesia. Chinese flag-carrying ‘MV Zhe Hai-526’ship arrived here at Harbaria of the Mongla port early Saturday (June 10, 2023). Also Read: Rampal electricity cost nearly doubles due to high coal price, increased dollar rate The unloading of the coal from the vessel started around 9:40 am and it is being deposited to the jetty of Rampal Power Plant through a lighterage vessel. Assistant manager of Shipping Agent Togi Shipping and Logistic Ltd, Khulna, Khandaker Riazul Haque, said the ship carrying the coal left for Mongla on May 27 and anchored at Harbaria-11 in Pashur Channel around 5 am. Also Read: Dollar crisis casts a shadow over operation of Rampal coal-fired power plant The coal will be taken to a coal shed through an automated belt, said Riazul. On May 16, a total of 30,000 metric tonnes and 30,500 metric tonnes of coal arrived at Mongla port by MV Bashundhara Impress and MV Basundhara Majesty, on May 16 and May 29, respectively. Also Read: Transmission from Adani’s Gadda power plant to national grid resumes

Bangladesh-India Friendship Power Company (Pvt.) Limited (BIFPCL), a joint venture of Bangladesh Power Development Board and India's NTPC Limited, has released a recruitment circular. Under this institution, 12 people will be appointed in five category posts in Rampal project. Interested candidates should apply online. Job circulars in Rampal power plant in 2023 1. Post Name: Assistant Manager (HR/Admin) No. of Posts: 3 Eligibility: Must have a Master's Degree with Graduation in HR/Management/Public Administration from a recognized university or MBA (HR) degree in such subject. Third Class/Department is not acceptable at any level of education. GPA should be 3.5 on a scale of 5 and CGPA 3.0 on a scale of 4. Should be fluent in Bengali and English with good computer skills. Experience in related field will be preferred. Age: Maximum 30 years Work Place: Rampal Project Site, Bagerhat Basic Salary: TK.52,000 Read more: Here's how you can apply for a Canadian work visa from Bangladesh 2. Post Name: Assistant Manager (Law) No. of Posts: 1 Qualification: Bachelor's Degree in Law from a recognized University. Master's Degree in Law will be preferred. Third Class/Department is not acceptable at any level of education. GPA should be 3.5 on a scale of 5 and 3.0 on a scale of CGPA 4. Should be fluent in Bengali and English with good computer skills. Experience in related field will be preferred. Age: Maximum 30 years Work Place: Rampal Project Site, Bagerhat Basic Salary: TK.52,000 Read more: Job Circular in Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant 3. Post Name: Imam (Staff Level-3) No. of Posts: 1 Eligibility: Fazil or equivalent pass from recognized Madrasah/Institution. Must have Master's degree in Al-Fiqh and Legal Studies from any Aliya Madrasah, Kamil or Dawrae Hadith from any Qawmi Madrasah or any university. Third Class/Department is not acceptable at any level of education. GPA should be 3.5 on a scale of 5 and 3.0 on a scale of CGPA 4. Should be fluent in Bengali and English with good computer skills. Must have at least five years working experience as Imam/Mufti in a big institution/mosque. Preference will be given if Hafez-e Qur'an and Ilme Qiraat are certified. Age: Maximum 45 years Work Place: Rampal Project Site, Bagerhat Basic Salary: TK.26,000 Read more: Jobs Circular in Dhaka Custom House 2023: Custom House, Dhaka will hire 48 posts 4. Post Name: Priest (Staff Level-3) No. of Posts: 1 Qualification: Graduation or equivalent from a recognized institution. Must have at least five years work experience as priest/scholar in any big institution/temple. Third Class/Department is not acceptable at any level of education. GPA should be 3.5 on a scale of 5 and 3.0 on a scale of CGPA 4. Should be fluent in Bengali and English with good computer skills. Kavyatirtha or any such certificate will be given preference. Age: Maximum 45 years Work Place: Rampal Project Site, Bagerhat Basic Salary: TK.26,000 Read more: Recruitment Circular in Bangladesh Army 2023 5. Post Name: Security Supervisor (Staff Level-IV) No. of Posts: 6 Qualification: HSC or equivalent pass from recognized institution. Must have at least five years of work experience in the relevant field in a large organization. Third Class/Department is not acceptable at any level of education. GPA should be 2.0 on a scale of 5 and CGPA 4 on a scale of 2.25. Should be fluent in Bengali and English with good computer skills. Preference will be given to retired officers from Army/Navy/Air Force or BGB. Age: Maximum 45 years Work Place: Rampal Project Site, Bagerhat Basic Salary: TK.23,000 Benefits: Basic salary along with housing allowance, medical facility, bonus, provident fund, gratuity, other fringe benefits will be provided as per the organization policy. Type of Job: Initially three years contractual. The contract period is renewable upto the age of 60 years on the basis of satisfactory performance of the worker. Age limit: Upper age limit for departmental candidates is 35 years for posts No. 1 and 2. Upper age limit is relaxable up to 32 years in case of children and grandchildren of veer freedom fighters/martyred veer freedom fighters. Conditions: The persons appointed to the posts No. 1 and 2 have to sign the service bond to serve this organization for three years. Read more: Ausbildung in Germany for Non-EU Students including Bangladesh , How to apply in Rampal power plant jobs Interested candidates should apply by filling the form on this website (http://bifpcl.teletalk.com.bd/bifpcl_new/) . Detailed information regarding recruitment can be known in this link. (http://bifpcl.teletalk.com.bd/bifpcl_new/docs/BIFPCL_3rd_Advertisement.pdf)

Unit-1 of the 1329MW Rampal Coal-fired power plant will resume production from Wednesday (February 15, 2023), still under a test run that started in August before being discontinued last month. According to official sources, Unit-1, having 660 MW capacity, was forced to shut down on January 14 due to shortage of coal supply. The authorities of the power plant were unable to open any letter of credit (LC) to import coal due to the dollar crisis. Read More: Bashundhara Group wins bid to supply 8 million MT of coal to Rampal power plant After a lot of persuasion at the government’s policy level, LC-opening was allowed for importing coal and the supplier sent a consignment of 30,000 metric tons. “The imported coal reached the jetty of the power plant on February 9 and now we are set to resume operation at the unit-1 of the plant from Wednesday,” said Anwarul Azim, deputy general manager of the Bangladesh-India Friendship Power Company Limited (BIFPCL) told UNB. The BIFPCL, a joint venture of Indian state-owned NTPC and Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB), is the owner and operator of the Rampal power plant. Read More: Maitree Super Thermal Power Plant in Rampal a concrete manifestation of India-Bangladesh friendship: Pranay Verma The official said another that another consignment of 50,000 MT of coal is also coming to the country soon. He also informed that the plant’s unit-2 is expected to come into operation in June this year. Sources said though the unit-1 is now under test run as the BPDB which has a power purchase agreement (PPA) with the BIFPCL has not given the go-ahead yet for start of the commercial operation of the plant. Meanwhile, BIFPCL officials said that State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid is expected to visit the plant on Thursday. Read More: Stolen device worth Tk 47 lakh of Rampal Power Plant recovered in Bagerhat; 4 arrested

Bashundhara Group has won the bid to supply 8 million tonnes of coal to the Rampal coal-fired power plant. According to official sources, three companies submitted bids to supply the coal. “Bashundhara came out as the lowest bidder offering $232.33 per MT of coal under the index of ICI-2 to reach the product up to the jetty of the power plant”, a top official of the Bangladesh-India Friendship Power Company (Pvt.) Ltd., (BIFPCL), told UNB. The BIFPCL invited the tender a few months back and three companies—local Bashundhara, Akij and Dubai-based Commodity First--submitted their respective bids to win the coal supply contract. The bids were opened on Monday and Bashundhara became the first lowest offering the coal price at $232.33 per MT while Commodity First became the second lowest with its offer to supply coal at $234 per MT while Akij Group offered the coal price at $282 per MT. Also read: Rampal Plant starts electricity production, 660MW from unit-1 added to nat’l grid Earlier, Bashundhara Group had won the first bid as well to supply a limited 300,000 MT of coal for the 1320 MW Maitree Super Thermal Power Plant (2X660 MW) at Rampal of Southern Bagerhat district. At that time, its joint venture consisted of two subsidiaries—Bashundhara Food and Beverage Industries Ltd. (BFBIL) and Bashundhara Multi Trading Limited (BMTL)—participated in the international tender of the BIFPCL and won the tender. The Maitree super thermal power project, known as Rampal power plant, was constructed by the Bangladesh-India Friendship Power Company (BIFPCL), a 50:50 joint venture between the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) and National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC)., started test operation on December 23 last year. The BPDB represents the Bangladesh government in the joint venture while NTPC represents the Indian central government. Dhaka and Delhi made a decision to build the plant under joint venture in 2010 and it took about 13 years to set up the plant. The BPDB will purchase the entire output of the plant under a 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA). But BPDB is yet to confirm its commercial operation date (COD). The COD will start once the BPDB is satisfied with its non-stop performance as per the agreement. When contacted BIFPCL’s chief procurement officer (CPO) Ziaur Rahman informed that the 8 million MT of coal will meet the 3 years requirement of the power plant with two units in operation. He said the coal will be unloaded either in Chattogram port or in Mongla Port depending on the available facilities and then it will be transported to the plant’s jetty through small ships each having 3000 MT to 5000 MT capacity. The official informed that the coal will be imported from Indonesia. According to Bashundhara Group, the local conglomerate, Bashundhara Multi Trading started its journey in 2018 to supply high-quality coal and stones for public-private projects. The company has become a leading venture in the sector through establishing a strong supply chain network with its services and transportation system, said the Bashundhara website. END/UNB/SH/JA

Police in a drive arrested four members of a “theft racket” and recovered a coal testing machine (bomb calorimeter) worth Tk 47 lakh, which was stolen from Bagerhat’s Rampal Power Plant. The arrests were made on Thursday night, said Mohammad Shamsuddin, officer-in-charge of Rampal Police Station. The arrestees were identified as Rabbi Islam alias Golam Rabbi, 24, son of Nurul Alam Sheikh of Pirojpur district; Abdul Karim, 27, son of Shamsul Alam, Kartik Sheel, 25, son of Prakash Chandra Sheel and Badsha Sheikh, 23, son of Bachchu Sheikh of Rampal upazila. On January 14, a machine called a “bomb calorimeter” was stolen from the Rampal Power Plant. Also read; Suspected thief apparently dies after jumping into pond A case was filed with Rampal Police Station in this regard on January 16. Police in a drive arrested four people from different parts of the district on Thursday and following information from them, the stolen device was recovered from Demra in Dhaka early Friday, said the OC. The arrestees were produced before the Bagerhat Chief Judicial Magistrate Court on Friday.  

Khulna division has been experiencing acute load shedding even in the winter due to suspension of power production at Rampal Power Plant amid shortage of coal caused by the dollar crisis. The production came to a halt on January 14, only after 27 days the coal-fired plant in Bagerhat started electricity generation by adding 660MW of electricity to the national grid produced from its first unit. Khulna West Zone Power Distribution Company (WZPDC), which distributes power in Khulna and Barishal region, authorities have been struggling to meet the electricity demand although the demand for electricity comes to half in the winter. Read more: Hasina, Modi jointly unveil Rampal Power Plant’s unit 1 On Thursday, the Khulna region experienced 24 MW load shedding in off-peak hours while during peak hours it was four MW. On Friday, the load shedding was 5 MW while the residents of different areas in the city experienced power outages, officials said. Anwarul Azim, deputy manager of Bangladesh-India Partnership Power Company Ltd (BCPCL), said import of coal was suspended due to the crisis of US dollar that cut production by half on January 14. BCPCL is a joint venture of the Chinese firm China National Machinery Import & Export Corporation (CMC) and Bangladeshi state-owned North-West Power Generation Company Bangladesh Limited (NWPGCL). Rampal Power plant’s Unit-1 has a capacity of producing  660MW of electricity . Before suspension of production, its Unit-1 used to produce 560-570 MW. Read more: Rampal Plant starts electricity production, 660MW from unit-1 added to nat’l grid Of this, 400MW was added to the national grid via Aminbazar-Gopalganj transmission line and 260MW was added to Khulna-Bagerhat. Around 5,000 tonnes of coal are needed for the operation of the power plant and all are imported from Indonesia but due to the dollar crisis the import of coal was suspended. Anwarul Azim said banks did not allow opening of Letter of Credit (LC) for importing coal due to the dollar crisis. “Already, a coal-carrying vessel from Indonesia is ready to leave for Bangladesh but we are trying our best to import coal. We hope the problem will be resolved soon,” he added.

The coal-fired Rampal Power Plant in Bagerhat has finally started electricity generation on experimental basis through adding 660MW of electricity to the national grid produced from its first unit. Rampal power plant, formally known as Maitree Super Thermal Power Project, started its experimental power generation from Saturday night, Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) Director Shamim Hasan said. Read more: Hasina, Modi jointly unveil Rampal Power Plant’s unit 1 He said it may take a week to a month to start commercial operation of unit-1. Anwarul Azim, deputy manager of Rampal thermal power plant, said 660MW of electricity is being produced from unit-1. Of this, 400MW is being added to the National Grid in Dhaka via Aminbazar-Gopalganj transmission line and 260MW is being supplied to Khulna-Bagerhat. Further 660MW electricity from the coal-fired power plant’s unit-2 will be added to the national grid in June 2023, he added. “Already 79.35 percent of the work of unit-2 has been completed,” he informed. Read more: First coal shipment for Rampal power plant arrives from Indonesia The 1320 (2x660) MW coal-fired power plant has been set up at a cost of approximately USD 2 billion and is located in Rampal, in the Bagerhat district under Khulna division of Bangladesh. The Maitree Super Thermal Power Project is being constructed under the Indian government’s concessional financing scheme. It was built by Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) for the Bangladesh-India Friendship Power Company Private Ltd. The latter is a 50:50 joint venture company between India's National Thermal Power Company (NTPC) Ltd and Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB), said the officials. Read more: Power flow set up from Payra plant to Rampal sub-station Rampal power plant is being set up with super critical technology to actively mitigate environmental impact. The coal imported as raw material for power generation at this station is being transported through the Pasur river in the Sundarbans. Unit-1 of the power plant was successfully synchronized with the national grid on August 15 this year. On September 6, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi jointly unveiled unit-1 of the power plant. Once both units are commissioned, Rampal power plant will be one of the largest in Bangladesh, Subhash Chandra Pandey, project director of Bangladesh-India Friendship Power Company (Pvt.) Limited, told UNB.