The Matarbari Ultra Super Critical Coal-Fired Power Plant has turned into a haven for corruption for the officials of state-owned Coal Power Generation Company Bangladesh Limited (CPGCBL) who indulged in widespread anomalies in tenders and procurements.
Project officials alleged that a nexus of the top brass at CPGCBL has planned to embezzle Tk50 billion in the name of importing coal for the power plant in three years.
Besides, there were anomalies of Tk17.7 billion in different forms during the last 15 years of the ousted Awami League regime.
Meanwhile, members of Bangladesh Navy arrested seven people while smuggling electric cables worth about Tk150 million from the Matarbari power plant early Sunday.
Law enforcers also arrested CPGCBL Managing Director Abul Kalam Azad at the Dhaka airport on Sunday while trying to flee the country.
Besides, an international consortium on 29 August sent a letter to Power Energy and Mineral Resources Adviser Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan about irregularities and corruption of dishonest officials of the CGPCBL.
The CGPCBL invited international tenders for the supply of 9.6 million tonnes of coal for the Matarbari plant in three years, according to the letter.
Despite the mention of experience in coal import and supply, the tender process was delayed for 10 months in connivance of some unscrupulous officials to give undue favour to Meghna Group's Unique Cement Consortium.
A group in the CGPCBL lingered the procurement process through amending the tender four times to favour the disqualified Unique Cement Consortium.
The initial conditions of the tender required that the contractor company must have experience in importing at least 12 million tonnes of coal, which is a relevant condition for tenders related to importing coal.
But the conditions were relaxed for giving an unfair advantage to a particular company. To favour the venture, the conditions were changed to the experience of importing 12 tonnes of iron, fertiliser and chemical, cement or food grains.
Meghna Group’s consortium filed a writ petition with the High Court against the international consortium which brought allegations of tender irregularities. The hearing began on Sunday where the state counsel was absent.Later, the court fixed tomorrow for the next hearing.
Regarding the drive against Matarbari project officials, officer-in-charge of Moheshkhali Police Station Sukanta Chakrabarty said an influential gang has prepared to smuggle a large amount of electric cables from the Matarbari power plant.
“A team of Navy, led by Lt Commander Syed Saqib Ahmed, launched a raid on the power plant on Saturday afternoon. They Navy personnel seized electrical cables worth Tk150 million from Jetty No. 4 of the port adjacent to the power plant during the drive that lasted till early Sunday,” he said.
These electrical cables were being smuggled to Chattogram in four containers in a barge and the Navy personnel immediately arrested seven people in this connection, the OC added.
During interrogation, the arrestees said these electrical cables were being taken to the private company Iqbal Marine in Chattogram for sale.
They confessed that CPGCBL Managing Director Azad, Chief Engineer Saiful Islam and Project Security Officer Mohammad Alfaz Hossain were involved in the illegal shipment.
Corrupt CPGCBL officials face allegations of widespread anomalies in the tender process for selling dry ash produced from used coal in the Matarbari Power Plant, after irregularities in the tender for supplying coal for the power plant.
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) decided to investigate the allegations of illegal money laundering worth billions of taka. Azad, CPGCBL Executive Director (Finance) Mohammed Shahid Ullah, acting Chief Engineer Mohammad Moniruzzaman, Executive Engineer (Design) Kamrul Islam, Assistant Security Officer Alfaz Uddin and DGM (Deputation) Matiur Rahman are under the scanner of the anti-graft watchdog.
Bd pratidin English/Lutfful Hoque
