Adani Power announced that they have not received any news about the Bangladesh government wanting to change their power deal. Recently, a report mentioned that Bangladesh’s energy minister said they might try to renegotiate the 25-year power purchase agreement with Adani. This would happen unless a court rules to annul the deal.
The news comes amid serious allegations against Gautam Adani, who has been accused of being involved in a $265 million bribery scheme in India, which he denies. An Adani Power spokesperson confirmed, “We have no indication that Bangladesh is reviewing our power deal.”
On Monday, Adani Power shares fell by 1.32% to Rs 547.50 each. Despite facing payment delays, Adani Power committed to continuing electricity supply to Bangladesh. However, these payment issues are making it hard for them to keep operations going. The spokesperson expressed concern, saying, “Bangladesh’s dues are significant and making plant operations unsustainable.”
Adani Power started supplying electricity to Bangladesh in 2023 under a long-term agreement made in 2017 when Sheikh Hasina was Prime Minister. This 1,600 megawatt plant uses expensive imported coal and covers about 10% of Bangladesh’s power needs. The spokesperson also stated, “We believe Bangladesh will uphold its commitments, just as we have kept our side of the agreement.”
The interim government of Bangladesh is reviewing the Adani power deal and other contracts to ensure they are trustworthy for future international talks and arbitration. In the fiscal year 2022/23, Bangladesh paid Adani 14.02 taka per unit for electricity, which is much higher than the average of 8.77 taka per unit from other suppliers. Even though the price dropped to 12 taka for 2023/24, it is still 27% more than other private Indian producers and up to 63% more than state-owned Indian plants.