The power generation capacity of furnace oil-fired power plants in Bangladesh is 6,278 MW, representing approximately 26% of the total power generation capacity. However, due to outstanding bills owed by the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) to private power generation companies (IPPs), the fuel supply has been interrupted, resulting in a production crisis for fuel oil and gas-based power plants. As a result, load shedding has increased throughout the country.
The outstanding bills owed by the IPPs to BPDB are approximately Tk 18,000 crore, causing financial strain on the companies and hindering their ability to import necessary fuel. Experts suggest that increased production from fuel oil-fired power plants could alleviate the crisis, but the lack of payment from BPDB has prevented this from happening. IPPs are facing the risk of defaulting on bank loans and being unable to meet operational costs. The current situation is causing losses and deficits in working capital for these companies. The production cost of electricity from HFO power plants is Tk. 13 per kilowatt hour, and if these plants run at total capacity throughout the year