Adani Group's troubles are mounting amid allegations of bribery in the US. It has been recommended to set up an agency to investigate the power deal struck with the Adani Group in Bangladesh when Sheikh Hasina was PM. A committee constituted by the interim government has recommended the formation of this agency. Apart from this, six other major energy and power contracts signed during Sheikh Hasina's tenure as PM have also been demanded to be probed.
A review committee of the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources has recommended the appointment of an agency to investigate the agreements reached regarding power production agreements from 2009 to 2024, an official statement said.
The committee demands- cancel or revise the agreements A statement issued from the office of Chief Adviser to the Interim Government Mohammad Yunus said that the review committee is reviewing seven major energy and power projects. This also includes Adani (Godda) BIFPCL 1234.4 MW coal fired plant. Among the other six contracts, a contract has been signed with a Chinese company to build a 1320 MW coal-fired power plant.
The statement also said that the committee has gathered a lot of evidence, based on which the agreements should be annulled or reconsidered in accordance with international laws and procedures. Apart from this, additional time has been sought to investigate several other contracts.
This image is from the Adani Power Plant site. This is what the project looked like when it started.
In 2016, Hasina signed an agreement with the government Adani Group's Godda Power Plant is the Group's first international power plant. In which a 1600 MW thermal power plant was installed in Godda, Jharkhand. Due to this, electricity is being supplied to Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) through transmission lines. In 2016, an agreement was signed with Sheikh Hasina's government in this regard.
Adani Power Limited (APL) started exporting electricity to Bangladesh from 10 April 2023 through its power project. In 2017, the company signed a deal to supply electricity to Bangladesh from the Godda Power Plant for 25 years under a Power Purchase Agreement.
The Adani Group last month sent a letter to the Bangladesh government regarding an outstanding power supply bill of $800 million. Regarding this, the Bangladesh Power Development Board said that they have already paid 150 million dollars despite the dollar crisis.
This plant was operational in three and a half years Gautam Adani shared a picture with Sheikh Hasina on social media after the commissioning of Godda Power Plant. He then wrote, 'I am honored to meet Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on commissioning and handing over full load of 1600 MW Ultra Super-Critical Godda Power Plant. I salute the dedicated teams of India and Bangladesh who, despite facing Covid, commissioned the plant in a record time of three and a half years.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
