Govt fast tracking $250 million payment to Adani
Bangladesh govt has fast-tracked payment of outstanding dues ahead of Nov 7 deadline
The Bangladesh government has fast tracked a payment of $200-250 million to Adani Power in India in order to continue receiving power, says the New Indian Express.
Sources said ahead of the November 7 deadline, the government has fast-tracked the payment of the outstanding dues. Quoting a Bangladeshi official, news agency Reuters has said the country has cleared $96 million last month and opened a credit line of $170 million.
Sources told TNIE the Bangladesh government owes Adani Power about $900 million, which is due since April this year. Of the $900 million, $840 million is the amount due for power supplies and $170 million for an additional credit line opened by the government this month.
As per company sources, Adani Power immediately needs money to procure coal from Australia for its ultra-supercritical power project at Godda that supplies electricity to Bangladesh. The sources said that since the Godda power project is ultra-supercritical, coal for the same is not available in India, and Adani Power needs to import the coal either from Australia or Indonesia.
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Though Adani Group owns coal mines in Australia's Carmichael Project and is transported to India as well, sources said that coal is not enough for supplies to the Godda project.
In November 2017, Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) executed a long-term Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with APL's wholly-owned subsidiary Adani Power Jharkhand Limited (APJL) to procure 1,496 MW net capacity power from 2X800 MW ultra-supercritical power project at Godda.Adani is expected to commission its second 800 MW unit soon.
Bangladesh has been facing a serious shortage of dollars since 2022 due to high crude oil prices after the Russian attack on Ukraine. The situation aggravated after the political turmoil that broke out in the country leading to the ouster of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina on 5 August this year.
Adani sources said that the interim government has been trying to make the payment but has been struggling due to dollar shortage. Bangladesh's forex reserves have fallen to less than $20 billion at the end of September 2024.
