Centre allows Adani Power to link Godda plant with Indian grid, reports ‘The Indian Express’

The Union government has allowed Adani Power to connect its power plant in Jharkhand's Godda district, which was so far supplying electricity only to Bangladesh, with the Indian grid, The Indian Express reported on Friday.

In 2018, the Narendra Modi government framed guidelines on generators that supply power exclusively to a neighbouring country. Adani Power's plant in Godda was the only one that had a contractual obligation to supply all the electricity it generated to another country – in this case, Bangladesh.

The Union government's decision allowing linking of the Godda plant with the Indian grid through a line-in-line-out arrangement would enable the Adani Group company to sell power to domestic distribution companies.

The line-in-line-out is an arrangement where a new line is connected to an existing transmission line, allowing the branching of power from the existing line to supply a new load.

The Adani plant will be connected to the Indian grid through a transmission line that will be laid over 56 villages of Godda and Poreyahat tehsils in Jharkhand, according to The Indian Express.

To this end, the Union government issued an order on September 29, giving Adani Power the same powers that the country's telegraph authority has under the 1885 Indian Telegraph Act, reported the newspaper.

The Act allows the telegraph authority to place and maintain a telegraph line under, over, along or across any immovable property.

The September 29 order follows amendments brought by the Union power ministry for the import and export of electricity.

Earlier, the Central Electricity Authority amended the procedure to facilitate cross-border flows of power, according to The Indian Express. Additionally, the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission had changed regulations for the Inter-State Transmission System and those governing cross-border trade.

The Inter-State Transmission System is a high-voltage electricity network that connects Indian states, allowing power to flow from regions with surplus electricity to those with a deficit. It is managed by the Central Transmission Utility of India Limited.

After a political crisis in Bangladesh in August 2024, the Union government had also amended guidelines on power exports to allow Adani Power to sell electricity contracted to Bangladesh within India “in case of sustained non-scheduling of full or part capacity”.

The amendment also allowed for the sale of power to the Indian grid if payments by Bangladesh are delayed.

Following this, the Adani Group company, on October 31, 2024, halved its supply to Bangladesh on account of delayed payments triggered by a shortage of foreign exchange in the neighbouring country. A day later, the company closed one of its units in Godda, leaving the plant operating at a capacity of about 42%.

Dhaka subsequently asked Adani Power to continue supplying only the electricity from the lone operating unit at the Godda plant.

In February, the government-run Bangladesh Power Development Board asked the firm to resume supplies from the second unit. It said it had been paying $85 million, or Rs 747.5 crore, per month to the Adani Group to settle outstanding dues.

Also read: Why workers at an Adani power plant who gave up land for jobs went on a hunger strike

The agreement between the Adani Group and the Bangladeshi government was signed in 2017 during the Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League government in Dhaka. As part of the agreement, the plant in Godda supplies 7% to 10% of Bangladesh's base load, or the minimum amount of electricity needed to meet a particular region's demand.

Opposition parties in India have questioned whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi was directly involved in the deal between the Adani Group and the Bangladeshi government.

In Bangladesh too, Adani Power's electricity exports have long been at the centre of controversy, with experts contending that it entails Dhaka buying power at exorbitantly high prices.

On August 5, 2024, Hasina resigned as Bangladesh's prime minister and fled to India amid protests seeking her ouster. Nobel laureate economist Muhammad Yunus had taken over as the head of the interim government three days later.

In September 2024, The Indian Express reported that Bangladesh's interim government headed by Yunus was planning to examine the terms under which Indian businesses, including the Adani Group, operated there.

The reports about Bangladesh re-examining the terms for Indian businesses came two days after the Financial Times reported that the Adani Group had warned Dhaka that its overdue payments – amounting to more than $500 million, or over Rs 4,398 crore – had become unsustainable.

Also read: Near Adani's Jharkhand power plant, villages still struggle for basic health, education

Source: Scroll
Related Posts: OpenAI launches ChatGPT Health to connect medical records Netanyahu touts his strong connect with world leaders Google Unveils Major AI Initiatives For India At I/O Connect 2025- Details Meta Connect 2025 Chennai’s residents connect with hidden art masterpieces in their homes NYC-Liberia Connect India's first Vande Bharat sleeper express to connect Delhi and Patna You may no longer be allowed to board flights with power banks… License bids of Adani Electricity and Torrent Power to be heard in July Multibagger small-cap stock bags ₹370 crore order from Adani Power subsidiary