The BPDB has announced a plan to build three solar power plants in different parts of the country. It aims to develop a 50 MW project in Rangunia, a 20 MW array on a pond at a coal mine in Dinajpur district, and a 7.6 MW installation in Rangamati district, in southeastern Bangladesh.

The state agency published advertisements on Feb. 16 announcing that it is seeking international partners for the construction of the power plants, which will be financed from “cash foreign exchange under power sector development fund of BPDB.” The agency wants to commission the grid-tied plants within 12 months of signing contracts. The government will provide land for the plants.

According to BPDB officials, the 20 MW solar power plant will be set up in a polluted zone, on a pond that was created after extracting coal for years. The pond, according to a recently conducted feasibility study, has the capacity to host a floating solar power plant with 40 MW to 50 MW of capacity.

The 7.6 MW solar power plant will be set up on a plot of land near the 230 MW Karnafuli hydropower station, about 50 kilometers from the port city of Chattogram. The BPDB said it wants to build the new power plant near another 7.4 MW PV array that went online in 2019.

Bangladesh currently has the capacity to generate 958 MW of power from renewable sources, including 724 MW from solar.