Cox's Bazar, Sep 06 (V7N) - The Matarbari coal power plant is at risk of halting production due to a pause in coal imports. The plant currently has 280,000 tons of coal, which officials say will last for one to one and a half months. The project is also suffering from severe issues due to irregularities and corruption.
 
Coal for the Matarbari plant has been supplied by Sumitomo Corporation of Japan for the commissioning of the plant's units. However, the contract with this Japanese firm expired in August.
 
Typically, the Coal Power Generation Company is required to issue tenders for coal procurement before existing supplies deplete. But due to misconduct, corruption, and ongoing legal disputes involving top officials, this process has been delayed.
 
Monowar Hossain Majumdar, the Operations Engineer at the Coal Power Generation Company, warned that if coal supplies are not secured, production could stop within two months.
 
The project’s director and chief engineer have refused to comment. They are both under serious allegations of corruption and favoritism. On August 30, the navy seized cables worth 15 crore Taka from a ship being offloaded, leading to a lawsuit. The project director, Abul Kalam Azad, has been detained in connection with this incident.
 
There are also corruption allegations against several officials, including Assistant Security Officer Alfaz Uddin and Chief Engineer Md. Saifur Rahman.
 
Alfaz Uddin reported that the plant's perimeter is approximately 9 kilometers, and security personnel are managing the site's safety.
 
Regarding the cable seizure, Assistant Security Officer Mizanul Hasan noted that the cables lacked the required gate pass and invoice during their transportation in containers.
 
The Matarbari coal power plant began operations in 2023. As of August 31, it has supplied 364,817,546 units of electricity to the national grid.
 
Energy experts believe that a shutdown due to coal shortages could significantly impact the national grid.

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