Govt extends power purchase contracts with Summit

The government has extended its contracts with Summit Group's three gas-based power plants for the purchase of electricity in the next five years.

The plants, having a combined power generation capacity of around 50 megawatts (MW), are located in Dhaka's Ashulia, Narsingdi's Madhabdi and Cumilla's Chandina.

The cabinet committee on government purchase approved the extension yesterday.

The plants were established in 2003 and the contracts expired in November last year.

There is no provision of capacity payments in the contract extension, said Md Mahmudul Hossain Khan, secretary to the cabinet division for coordination and reforms.

"They will only get the operational charges which would cost Tk 6.04 per unit," he said.

In the next five years, the government would save Tk 0.0725 per unit of electricity, meaning a total of Tk 6.81 crore.

Meanwhile, Summit Group informed the cabinet meeting on economic affairs that it has formed a special purpose vehicle company named Summit LNG Terminal II Co, which will build and operate the country's third floating storage and regasification unit.

The unit, with a capacity of 600 mmcfd, was supposed to be built by the Summit Oil and Shipping Co Ltd.