Bangladesh fast tracks payment to Adani Power after supply cut

DHAKA/BANGALORE: Bangladesh is accelerating payment of more than $800 million it owes Adani Power ahead of a Nov 7 deadline set by the Indian company, which has cut electricity exports to Bangladesh by more than half, two senior government officials said.

Adani Power, which exports power to Dhaka from its 1,600 megawatt (MW) Godda plant in eastern India’s Jharkhand state, set the deadline for receipt of dues as it faces challenges in importing coal necessary for power generation, three sources familiar with the matter said.

The company, owned by billionaire Gautam Adani, reduced the power supply to Bangladesh this month to 700-800MW from around 1,400MW, a senior official at the Bangladesh Power Development Board told Reuters. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak with the media.Adani Power did not respond to Reuters queries on the payment deadline.

Bangladesh has been struggling to pay its bills due to costly fuel and goods imports since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. The political turmoil that led to the ouster of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in August has also compounded its troubles. “Last month, we cleared $96 million, and this month, a letter of credit has been opened for an additional $170 million,” Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan, the power and energy adviser in the interim Bangladesh government, told Reuters.

Last month, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters that Bangladesh was scrutinising its contract with Adani Power, as it was charging Bangladesh a rate nearly 27 per cent higher than those of India’s other private producers.

Adani Power Chief Financial Officer Dilip Kumar Jha, in a quarterly earnings conference call last week, said there were no issues related to the power supply to Bangladesh.“We hope that there will be no further deterioration in terms of the outstanding,” he said.