Rampal:The government has approved a 442-megawatt peak solar power plant in Rampal, which now includes a provision for eight hours of battery energy storage capacity. This decision follows a directive from the Prime Minister aimed at enhancing the storage facilities within the renewable energy project.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, State Minister for Planning Md. Zonayed Abdur Rahim Saki announced that the original project proposal did not include battery storage, as it planned to supply electricity directly to the national grid. However, the Development Project Proposal (DPP) will be revised to incorporate the eight-hour battery storage capacity as directed by the Prime Minister.
Initially, the project proposed four hours of battery storage through a supplementary arrangement. The ECNEC meeting, however, mandated that eight hours of storage capacity be included in the main DPP rather than as a separate project. This change is expected to increase the project's overall cost.
The authorities had initially estimated the cost of solar power generation without battery storage. The revised costs, accounting for the enhanced storage capacity, are yet to be calculated. The state minister noted that while the additional storage would increase initial costs, it would also yield greater benefits by allowing electricity storage for use when needed, including nighttime supply.
The Rampal solar project is set to be developed on land initially reserved for the second unit of the Rampal coal-fired power plant, which has a generation capacity of 1,320MW. As the second unit did not proceed, the prepared land will now be used for the solar project. Approximately 685 acres at the site have already been filled by the Power Development Board (PDB).
This solar project is part of the government's broader strategy to expand renewable energy generation. The project will utilize the existing prepared land, negating the need for a new site. The environmental assessment and clearance processes for the project are ongoing.
Saki emphasized that the solar project is classified as a 'green' project under Bangladesh's environmental classification system. Projects are categorized into red, yellow, and green based on potential environmental impacts, with solar projects falling into the green category.
The government is also developing a new policy framework to ensure that environmental considerations and other key issues receive more attention during the DPP preparation stage. The proposed framework will address 10 to 12 key considerations, with separate reports incorporated into the DPPs. Environmental considerations will be among the most important issues under this new policy.
Several directives and observations were attached to projects approved at the ECNEC meeting. Some projects received policy-level approval, contingent upon compliance with specific observations, requiring implementing agencies to revise and resubmit proposals to ECNEC. A major general directive emphasized the quality and durability of infrastructure.