Pvt power cos owe Tk 36,751 cr to PDB

January-September 2023

Mahfuz Emran : The Power Development Board (PDB) is facing huge losses from the financial year 2021-22. However, the government is not giving sufficient subsidy to the electricity sector to meet the deficit. Due to this, the power companies owe to PDB is increasing. The government waived the outstanding subsidy for the fiscal year 2021-22 last fiscal year. Again, some part of the outstanding subsidy of the last financial year has been waived in the current financial year. Despite this, the arrears are increasing in the power sector.
The Ministry of Finance has taken the initiative to pay the outstanding bills of the electricity companies through special bonds to the respective banks. In view of this, PDB has finalized the electricity company-based arrears account. It can be seen that from January to September 2023, PDB has arrears of Tk 36,750.53 crore. Out of this, Tk 28,077.13 crore is owed to the top 13 groups and companies.
According to PDB data, India’s power companies currently have the highest amount of electricity bill arrears. Its amount is Tk 4,111.68 crore. Of these, Adani’s is the most outstanding. The company’s Jharkhand power plant bill outstanding is Tk 281.24 crore. The other four companies owe Tk 129.92 crore. However, the other two companies in India have no power import bill due from PDB till September.
Meanwhile, bills of eight power plants of the domestic Summit Group are outstanding till September Tk 3,611.27 crores. And Bangladesh-China Power Company’s Payra Power Plant’s debt stands at Tk 328.14. The domestic United Group, which is in the next position (fourth), owes Tk 2,553.66 crores of seven power plants.
In terms of debt, there are three state-owned companies in the next three positions. Among them, the arrears of seven centers of Northwest Power Generation Company, which is in fifth position, are Tk 2,289.45 crores. Electric Generation Company (EGCB) in the sixth position owes Tk 2,286.64 crore for three centers and Ashuganj Power Supply Company (seventh place) owes Tk 2,194.26 crore for six centers.
CDC Malaysia is ranked eighth in terms of arrears. The arrears of the two centers of this foreign-owned company are Tk 1,589.85 crores. The debt of the six power plants of the domestic Orion Group in the next place is Tk 1,378.14 crore. Rural Power Company (RPCL) is ranked tenth. The arrears of the four centers of this company owned by various Palli Vidyut Samiti of REB isTk 1,355.10 crore.
The arrears of the seven power plants of the private sector Dorin Group, which is in the next position, stood at Tk 1,257.21 crore till September. The arrears of the four power plants of Confidence Group, which is in the 12th place, is Tk 1,154.72 crore. And Akron Group (Banglacat) in the 13th place has arrears of five power plants amounting to Tk 1,137.40crore.
The rest of the groups or companies have power plant arrears below Tk 1 crore. Out of this, the arrears of Rampal power plant of Bangladesh-India Friendship Power Company is Tk 959.22 crore. The arrears of the four centers of the private sector Baraka Group are Tk 790.90 crore, the arrears of Singapore-Bangladesh joint ownership Sembcorp-NWPGC are Tk 748.95 crores, the arrears of the three centers of the Youth Group are Tk 584.63 crores and the three centers of the Desh Group are Tk 542.39 crores.
The outstanding amount of power plants of groups or companies outside of this is below Tk 500 crore. Among them, state-owned BR Powergen’s dues are Tk 491.44 crore, Sri Lanka’s Lanka Group’s Tk 419.13 crore, SS Power’s Tk 369.14 crore, Anlima Group’s Tk 346.37 crore, Paramount Group’s Tk 342.60 crore, Barisal Electric’s Tk 336.30crore. Tk 331.62 crores of foreign owned new power company and Tk 315.16 crores of index group. Besides, PGCB has outstanding wheeling charges of Tk 308.46 crore.
Meanwhile, six private sector solar power companies owe Tk 281.89 crore, EPV Group Tk 264.18 crore, KPCL jointly owned by Summit and United Group Tk 256.94 crore, Hosaf Group Tk 255.30 crore, United Kingdom’s Agrico Tk 133.46 crore, Domestic Max Group Tk 122.83 crores, Tk 116.70 crores of Sinha Group, Tk 96.99 crores of Regent Group, Tk 84.27 crores of Sikdar Group, Tk 66.24 crores of Northern Power, Tk 74.77 crores of American APR Energy and Tk 33.41 crores of domestic GBB Power.