State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid today said that all studies till now show that local coal extraction for power generation is neither feasible nor cost-effective.

He made the remarks while speaking at a webinar on "EP Talks: Payra Power Plant: An Example of Timely Execution".

He said the government has conducted a number of feasibility studies on coal extraction. "But so far all the studies show extraction of coal from the local mines is not viable and cost effective for their use in power plants," he said.

A number of environmental or left-oriented groups at home and abroad have been against the government move for construction of coal-fired power plants. "Now, the management of Payra Plant should take those opposition groups to visit the plant to show them its environmental and other aspects," he said.

Nasrul Hamid said that construction of Matarbari port will facilitate coal import and transportation which will further reduce the fuel cost of the plant.