nReliance Power on Tuesday said it, along with Japanese energy major JERA, will jointly set up a 750 MW gas-based combined cycle power project (phase-1) at Meghnaghat in Bangladesh. Reliance Power will hold 51 per cent stake in the joint venture company, while JERA will hold 49 per cent stake, the company said in a statement.
“Reliance Power signed a partnership agreement with JERA, one of the largest power utilities of Japan, for jointly setting up 750 MW gas-based combined cycle power project (phase-1) at Meghnaghat, Bangladesh,” the statement said. The project agreements for phase-1 were signed with the authorities in Bangladesh on Sunday. Reliance Power, the power generation company of Reliance Group, had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU), during the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to meet Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina at Dhaka in June 2015, for setting up 3,000 MW gas-based combined cycle power project in phases in Bangladesh. The project agreements include the Power Purchase Agreement and Land Lease Agreement with BPDB (Bangladesh Power Development Board) for the power project, Gas Supply Agreement with Titas Gas, a subsidiary of Petrobangla for the supply of gas to the power project and Implementation Agreement with Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources. The project will be set up within 36 months of signing the agreements, it said.
“This joint venture project will give a tremendous boost to the economic and industrial growth of Bangladesh and will enhance the energy security of the country with clean, green and reliable LNG based power. We are excited to be part of the growth story of Bangladesh in partnership with JERA,” Reliance Group of Companies Chairman Anil Ambani said in the statement, JERA President Satoshi Onoda said, “It is our great honour to participate in the largest IPP in Bangladesh. Together with Reliance Power, a leading private power company in India, JERA will realize a stable power supply and contribute to sustainable economic growth in Bangladesh.”
The project will represent the largest Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the power sector in Bangladesh, and shall cater to the country’s rising needs for power, contributing to Bangladesh’s goal of energy security, it said. Reliance Power will relocate one module of equipment procured from internationally reputed original equipment manufacturers for its combined cycle power project at Samalkot in Andhra Pradesh for phase-1 of the project in Bangladesh. The transaction will result in Rs 835 crore (USD 116 million) debt reduction for Reliance Power, payable to US-Exim. Reliance Power is a private sector power generation and coal resources company. The company has one of the largest portfolios of power projects in the private sector in India, based on coal, gas and renewable energy, with an operating portfolio of 5,945 megawatts.
JERA Co., Inc. (JERA) was established on April 30, 2015 based on comprehensive alliance entered into between Tokyo Electric Power Company and Chubu Electric Power Company encompassing the entire energy supply chain from upstream fuel investment and fuel procurement through power generation. In July 2016, JERA succeeded its parent companies’ fuel business and the overseas power generation business, and aims to become one of the world’s leading energy firms. Within the power generation portfolio, JERA owns/has domestic investments in 26 power projects with 67 GW of generating capacity and nearly 10 GW of generating capacity overseas (including projects under
development).
