CG for quick use of coal for electricity
ET Report

The caretaker government has decided to put major emphasis on extracting coal and installing coal-based power plant to meet the increasing electricity crisis and reduce pressure on coal.
The decision came from the meeting of the council of advisers that discussed on fuel situation following the power-point presentation by Special Assistant to Chief Adviser Dr M Tamim Wednesday, relevant sources said.
The meeting has brought the coal issue to midterm importance category from long-term one to mobilise highest efforts for the sector. The issue could not be elevated to short-term importance category, as coal extraction and installation of power plant consume time, they said.
The meeting, however, has asked the concerned special assistant to finalise the coal policy within shortest possible time and start woks in the coal sector. It was hinted that coal policy might get its final shape and endorsement within a week, sources said.
The government has already taken policy decision to release maximum gas from power generation for using in coal fired generation. The council of advisers reviewed the coal reserves position in the country and emphasied extractions of the resource to go coal for power generation.
The country now experiences around 500 mw stranded power capacity due to gas supply limitation. A decision has been taken not to approve any new gas-based power plant from the existing gas reserves.
The council also directed the power ministry to install some non-gas based short-term rental power plants in the Chittagong region under government funds to feed the power-starved port city as they could give power within the shortest possible time.
Dr. Tamim in his presentation showed that the port city will not get rid of load shedding soon as the power plants located in Chittagong can't produce power due to gas shortage, and due to power shortage the PDB could not feed the region through the national grid.
The consumption of gas in the last fiscal was around 0.6 trillion cubic feet, although as per the master plan the demand for gas in the country should be 0.6 TCF in 2009-2010.
It is learnt that Chief Adviser Dr. Fakhrudding Ahmed expressed deep concern at the power and gas crises in the Chittagong region and asked the power ministry to go for short-term rental plants to serve the port city, as all economic activities there almost ground to a halt due to gas and power shortages.
The government has already taken moves to install seven costly rental power plants, six of them gas-based, in the country but most of the power plants are yet to come into operation as the errant companies selected by the government missed deadlines several times. None of the plants, however, are located in Chittagong.
It may be mentioned that despite having serious objections from the Power Development Board (PDB), the Power Division adopted the idea to implement the high-cost rental power plants at the fag end of the BNP-led coalition government's tenure.
Lately, the government has been planning to install the costly (it would be costlier as it would be non-gas based) plants again as it has no other 'alternatives', a meeting source said.
Chittagong is running gas and power shortages. It is getting 40-50 mmcfd less gas than required. On the other hand, the average load shedding in Chittagong is 190 MW to 200 MW. The demand of electricity in Chittagong is 490 MW," a PDB official said. .The country at present is experiencing around 1,500MW of load shedding as the PDB generates around 3,200MW of electricity against a demand for around 4,700MW.
Chittagong now faces electricity shortage of around 190MW against its demand for around 490MW while gas shortage in the city has been estimated at around 100 million cubic feet per day.'Even if rental plants come into operation, the situation in Chittagong will not improve much as the Chittagong power plants like Raujan and Shikalbaha are facing gas shortage. Power from other parts of the country cannot be transmitted there as it will create voltage problems. Chittagong needs local power plants', said the source.
Tamim, however, apprised the meeting that the electricity situation in the port city would improve slightly after the Kaptai hydropower plant increases production.The meeting also asked the ministry to expedite the process to increase gas supply by enhancing the capacity of pipeline and completing work-over programmes on some of the wells in different gas fields.