Dhaka:  The EPC (engineering, procurement and construction) contract for the proposed 1320MW coal-fired power plant in Rampal near the Sundarbans will be signed this month.

Power secretary and chairman of the Bangladesh-India Friendship Power Company Ltd (BIFPC) Monwar Islam revealed this while addressing a workshop on Power System Master Plan (PSMP), organised by JICA at Biddyut Bhaban in the city.

‘The date of signing the contract is yet to be confirmed. But hopefully it will be signed within this current month.’

The power secretary’s remarks come at a time when campaigners opposed to the plant on environmental grounds are stepping up efforts alleging the power plant will immensely affect the Sundarbans forest and its biodiversity.

The BIFPC, a joint venture company of Dhaka and New Delhi, has been implementing the 1320 MW coal-fired power plant.

Following concerns raised by different rights groups about the plant’s proximity to the Sundarbans, a UNESCO team recently visited the site and held discussions with officials from different government departments. They are yet to report their findings. It is alleged that their freedom to survey the site and collect evidence was severely restricted.

Presiding over the workshop, the power secretary said that 96 per cent  of people will come under electricity coverage by the end of 2019.

Experts from JICA made a presentation on the Power System Master Plan up to 2041, under which initially a plan will be made for 2016-30 and later it will be extended up to 2041.

Addressing the workshop as the chief gust, Nasrul Hamid said the planner of the master plan has to take into consideration the global changing scenario of the energy sector, environment and primary energy source.

He placed particular emphasis on inclusion of renewable energy, to which the whole world is giving special attention.
‘Renewable energy may dominate the future power generation,’ he added.