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The Summit Power Ltd (SPL) has planned to generate additional 69 megawatt (mw) electricity within March 2007 for supplying to the national grid for mitigating the country's nagging power crisis.
Company sources said of the SPL's planned electricity generation, 38mw would be added by August next and the remaining 31mw within March 2007.
"SPL will generate the power enhancing the generation capacity of its existing small power plants," SPL Chairman Muhammad Aziz Khan told the FE Monday.
He said SPL's power would be sold to the Rural Electrification Board (REB) for use under the areas of Dhaka Palli Biddut Samiti (PBS), Narsingdi PBS and Comilla PBS at the rate of Tk 2.03 per unit (1,000 watt per hour).
The REB sells SPL's power to the clients at Tk 3.30 per unit, he added.
SPL has already signed contracts for enhancement of its generation capacity and purchase of additional electricity with the Power Division and the REB.
The SPL signed agreement Monday with Power Division and REB for enhancing generation capacity of its Dhaka PBS from existing 11mw to 42 mw.
The company signed similar agreements with these two entities for enhancement of generation capacities of its Narshingdi PBS and Comilla PBS from 11mw to 36mw and 24mw respectively in June 2005.
The SPL now generates a total of 33mw electricity from three of its small power plants at Savar, Narshingdi and Comilla having the generation capacity of 11mw each.
Speaking at Monday's contract signing agreement Power Secretary ANH Akhter Hossain hailed the SPL for latters' initiative to generate additional power for the national grid in order to help augment the prevailing power crisis.
Aziz Khan also lauded the government for facilitating SPL to generate additional power for the country.
Responding to a query, the SPL chairman, however, was critical about halting the process of installing new small-scale power plants (SPPs) by the Prime Ministers' Office recently.
"It is unfortunate," he said adding, "The country could have had additional 400mw-500mw electricity if the SPPs were established."
The SPL is listed with the countries two bourses - Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) - and its shares are being traded at four-times their face value.
The company sought subscription for Tk 280 million to expand its Narsingdi and Comilla plants.
SPL is, however, the country's lone power generation company listed with the stock exchanges.
Two state-owned power corporations the Power Grid Company of Bangladesh Ltd (PGCB) and Dhaka Electric Supply Company Ltd (DESCO) also planned to offload their shares in the capital market by May 15, 2006.
The government has already decided to offload 25 per cent of their assets through direct listing in the stock market, Power Division sources said.
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