Power generation at Unit 1 of the Barapukuria Thermal Power Plant in Dinajpur was suspended on Friday morning following a mechanical fault in a pump, reducing the plant’s contribution to the national grid by around 50–55MW.

Abu Bakar Siddique, chief engineer of the plant, confirmed the matter and said repair work was underway to restore the unit.

“We are working to repair the fault. We hope to restart the unit by Saturday. Once operational, the electricity generated from the unit will be supplied to the national grid,” he said.

According to plant authorities, Unit 1 has an installed capacity of 125MW. Before the shutdown, however, it was generating and supplying around 50–55MW to the national grid.

Meanwhile, Unit 3 of the Barapukuria power plant remains operational. The 275MW-capacity unit is currently supplying around 170–180MW to the national grid.

Unit 2, which has an installed capacity of 125MW, has remained out of operation since 2020, according to plant authorities.

As a result, although the Barapukuria Thermal Power Plant has a total installed capacity of 525MW, only Unit 3 is currently generating electricity.

Repeated mechanical faults raise concern

The latest shutdown has raised fresh concerns over the plant’s reliability, as Unit 1 has previously experienced production disruptions due to mechanical problems.

The prolonged shutdown of Unit 2 has already left a significant portion of the plant’s installed capacity unused. With Unit 1 now also out of operation, the plant’s available generation capacity has fallen considerably.

The situation is particularly significant amid growing electricity demand in the northern region. A prolonged shutdown of Unit 1 could put additional pressure on the national grid and regional power supply.

Authorities are working to complete repairs and bring Unit 1 back into operation as soon as possible, while Unit 3 remains the plant’s only operational generating unit.