Country’s first offshore wind power project approved
Staff Reporter :
The Denmark’s green investment proposal valued at 1.3 billion US dollars for developing the country’s first 500 MW utility-scale offshore wind energy project has received a nod in principle from the government to carry out a detailed feasibility study and implement the first phase of development with (site) exclusivity in next 3 years.
Denmark’s Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) and Copenhagen Offshore Partners (COP), in association with Summit Group, had placed the $1.3 billion investment proposal in July earlier this year.
The Power Division then gave approval by the end of October, said an official of the government agency.
Once complete, the 500-megawatt wind energy project located off the coast of Cox’s Bazar in the countries southwest will directly supply electricity to the national grid via an onshore substation, said a press release.
In particular, this project presents a unique opportunity for Bangladesh to maximize the utilisation of coastal resources and support the development of its blue economy, Summit said.
The country’s largest private sector power producer also said even though Bangladesh has ambitious clean energy targets, it remains heavily reliant on fossil fuels.
The project comes at a crucial time for Bangladesh as despite ambitious clean energy targets, the country remains heavily reliant on fossil fuel imports, a comparatively costly power source due to global inflation-related price shocks.
Bangladesh needs to rapidly develop utility-scale renewable energy projects, while simultaneously adapting to climate resilience technologies, to support continued economic growth and eliminate ‘absolute poverty’ by 2041.
With the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) projecting an annual requirement of USD 1.7 billion in funding for the green transition, this multibillion-dollar proposal from Summit, CIP and COP may kick start a new wave of foreign and domestic investments, driving Bangladesh towards a truly climate prosperous future.
Once implemented, this offshore wind project will be the first of its kind in Bangladesh – and possibly in South Asia, enabling a “technology transfer” that would accelerate the learning curve for a nascent industry and reduce technological barriers to entry for future projects.
The preliminary study findings suggest that hundreds of direct and indirect jobs would be created during the construction phase, in addition to dozens of high-skilled permanent positions for the 30-year operational phase of the project.
