Staff Reporter :
The High Court has issued an injunction stopping India’s Adani Group from moving forward with its arbitration proceedings in Singapore over alleged unpaid bills tied to its power purchase agreement (PPA) with Bangladesh.
The bench of Justice Md Bazlur Rahman and Justice Urmi Rahman delivered the order today, ruling that the arbitration must remain paused until a previously appointed committee completes its review of the agreement and investigates possible irregularities.
The petition challenging the legality of the 5 November 2017 PPA was filed by Barrister M Abdul Kaiyum with the Supreme Court on 12 November last year. He also served a legal notice on 19 November to the BPDB chairman and the energy secretary, urging them to reassess or cancel the contract.
Speaking to reporters after the ruling, the petitioner argued that allowing Adani to begin arbitration before the inquiry committee submits its findings would diminish the significance of the investigation.
He reiterated allegations that the agreement was marred by several inconsistencies.
The petition pointed out that Bangladesh sources electricity from Indian and Nepali suppliers at significantly lower prices—Tk5.5 per unit from Indian state-owned firms, Tk8.5 from private Indian companies, and Tk8 from Nepal—while power from Adani exceeds Tk14 per unit.
Media reports have also raised concerns about the lack of transparency during price negotiations.
A year earlier, on 19 November, another HC bench had formed a three-member panel of international legal and energy experts to examine the PPA and report within 60 days.
Tensions between Adani Power and the Bangladesh Power Development Board resurfaced this month. On 3 November, Adani announced that it had opted for international arbitration to resolve disputes over pending payments under the 2017 pact. The company, led by Gautam Adani, said both sides had invoked the dispute resolution mechanism due to disagreements over the calculation of certain cost components.
Bangladesh’s Power, Energy, and Mineral Resources Adviser, Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan, however, told Reuters that negotiations were still ongoing and international arbitration would follow only if necessary.
Adani Power currently supplies electricity to Bangladesh from its 1,600MW coal-fired plant in Godda, eastern India, contributing nearly 10 percent of the country’s total power supply.
