Adani’s second unit resumes production, power supply increases
Graphics: Agamir Somoy
The second unit of India’s Adani power plant, which was shut down due to a technical glitch, has resumed operation. After restarting early Sunday morning, it began supplying 290 MW of electricity to Bangladesh since around 2 PM.
A total of 1,050 MW of electricity is currently being supplied to Bangladesh from both units combined.
Officials said that the power supply will gradually increase further, which may help ease load-shedding slightly.
The Adani power plant had been operating at limited capacity for a month due to shortage of coal. Production began picking up on Thursday evening as coal supplies improved, but around 11 PM that night, one unit suddenly shut down due to a technical fault. The resulting drop in output led to increased load-shedding across Bangladesh.
According to sources from the Power Development Board (PDB) and Power Grid Company, coal supplies were disrupted due to storms, reducing the plant's generation since August 7. Toward the end of last month, production was raised to supply around 900 MW during the day and up to 1,200 MW from evening until midnight.
Generation had crossed 1,400 MW late Thursday night just before the single unit failed, dropping output below 750 MW.
The 1,600 MW capacity coal-fired power plant built by Adani is located in Jharkhand, India. PDB signed a power purchase agreement with Adani in 2017. The plant features two 800 MW units and has a track record of supplying over 1,500 MW depending on demand.
