Beximco writes to CA urging security for country's largest solar plant

Highlights:

• Beximco Group writes a letter to relevant govt depts for security
• The group says if the plant is damaged, it will not be possible for the company to repay loan instalments taken through Sukuk bonds
• A group of people gathered and attempted to attack the 200MW solar power plant in Gaibandha on 7 September
• Locals highlighted various irregularities and alleged corruption in the Beximco Power Company Ltd project

Beximco Group has requested Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus to ensure the protection of Teesta Solar Limited – the country's largest solar power plant and a subsidiary of the business giant – from potential mob attacks.

The group, owned by businessman Salman F Rahman – who served deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina as her private industry and investment adviser – stated that if the plant is damaged, it will not be possible for the company to repay the loan instalments taken through Sukuk bonds.

Salman was arrested last month and has since been held on remand multiple times in several cases related to the deaths during the student-led uprising that led to the fall of the Hasina government on 5 August.

"We earnestly request immediate support from the Chief Adviser's Office and other relevant offices or departments to protect the solar park from any untoward incident and to issue necessary instructions to law enforcement to strengthen security," Osman Kaiser Chowdhury, director of Group Finance and Corporate Affairs at Beximco Group, said in a letter to the relevant government departments, including the chief adviser and finance adviser.

"We alone will not be able to contain such an attack," the letter added.

Chowdhury wrote the letter for support, saying a group of people gathered and attempted to attack the 200MW solar power plant on 7 September.

The letter stated, "We are receiving information that on 7 September 2024, or around that time, a group of people will attempt to gather and attack the 200MW Solar Park at Latshal, Sundorganj, Gaibandha, of Teesta Solar Limited."

According to media reports, residents from riverside areas held a long march and formed a human chain along the banks of the Teesta River in Sundarganj, Gaibandha, on Saturday. During the protest, locals highlighted various irregularities and alleged corruption in the Beximco Power Company Ltd project.

Speakers at the human chain accused Beximco of seizing land by taking innocent farmers hostage at gunpoint under the pretext of building a power project, effectively destroying the river.

They further claimed that multiple irregularities and corrupt practices had occurred in the construction of the plant on that land.

The solar park is already in commercial operation, selling energy to the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) and contributing to the semi-annual payments to the Sukuk holders of Beximco Green-Sukuk.

"Now, if there is any destruction or damage to the solar park from such gatherings and attacks, which are beyond our control, the park's ability and efficiency to generate electricity would be compromised, possibly leading to a complete shutdown," said the letter.

"Consequently, this situation – caused by factors beyond our control – may have adverse effects, including the non-generation and non-supply of electricity to BPDB, affecting future semi-annual payments to Sukuk holders, jeopardising the repayment abilities to lenders for the solar project, challenging compliance with the provisions of the trust deed of Beximco Green-Sukuk, and other contractual obligations, while also creating a risk of job losses."

A call from this correspondent to Kaiser's mobile phone on Sunday went unanswered. Messages sent to his WhatsApp also received no response.

Beximco Power Limited, a subsidiary of Beximco Group, built the power plant on 650 acres of land in Anabadi Char, Sundarganj upazila. The company has invested approximately $300 million, or Tk3,000 crore, in the project.

Beximco Group has raised a total of Tk3,000 crore through green Sukuk bonds, of which Tk1,800 crore has been invested in this solar power plant.

The government approved the project in 2016, and BPDB has signed a 20-year contract to purchase electricity from the plant at a rate of 0.15 cents per kilowatt-hour, the highest rate for any licensed solar power plant to date.

Since December 2022, the power generated from the plant has been fed into the national grid, adding 200 MW of electricity daily.