Nasrul Hamid Bipu’s long-term mechanism for siphoning public funds was the controversial ‘Quick Rental’ scheme—introduced by the previous authoritarian government to institutionalize systemic corruption in the power sector.
Under its peculiar legal framework, private power producers were guaranteed monthly "capacity charges" regardless of whether they generated any electricity. Remarkably, these payments were mandated in foreign currency, raising further concerns about the motives behind the policy.
This arrangement was made to facilitate the laundering of looted money abroad. From these Quick Rentals, Bipu used to receive regular monthly payments. He used to say, "Quick Rental is my golden egg-laying goose."
During Bipu's reign, more than a hundred private power plants were constructed without any tenders. Most of them turned out to be useless. Even though the government claims a production capacity of 25,000 megawatts, load-shedding never stopped. In fact, the Power Development Board (PDB) doesn’t even have an accurate estimate of actual electricity demand. According to available data, during the three terms of the Awami League government, a total of $28.3 billion was spent in the power sector.
Considering the current exchange rate (1 USD = 125 BDT), this amounts to Tk 3.5375 lakh crore. During the same period, Tk 1 lakh crore was looted just in the name of capacity charges.
That is, without producing any electricity, private power plants grabbed this huge amount of money simply by showing their ‘capacity’. Most of the owners of these plants are Awami League leaders or their close business associates. The inventor of this capacity charge looting was the former Prime Minister’s trusted bureaucrat Abul Kalam Azad.
But after 2014, the keys to Quick Rental passed to Nasrul Hamid Bipu. Quick Rental meant ‘Quick Money’. To ensure safe looting in the power sector, a law was passed granting immunity. That is, no one could question or prosecute the loot.
If someone paid Bipu commission, they would get approval for Quick Rental. Awami League leaders, local politicians, and loyal businessmen received Quick Rental licenses. Even a furniture company like Otobi was permitted private power generation.
Awami League’s Jahangir Kabir Nanak, Mirza Azam, Omar Farooq Chowdhury, Alauddin Nasim Chowdhury, the late Aslamul Haque, and 63 other party leaders and workers received approvals to set up Quick Rentals.
Upon getting permission, they sold off the papers for crores of taka. Each power plant changed hands three to four times. The same power plant was sold multiple times. For example, a power plant license given to AL praesidium member Jahangir Kabir Nanak was sold for Tk 5 crore to Aslam Haque. Aslam Haque later sold it to the Sikder Group. Bipu's younger brother Intekhabul Hamid Apu received two power plants.
In addition, former MP of Shariatpur Naim Razzak, former BCB director Jalal Yunus, former Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud, younger brother of former Land Minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury Javed—Abdus Salam, former State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam, former Tangail MP Tanvir Hasan (Choto Monir), former Religious Affairs Minister Faridur Rahman, Sylhet’s MP Habibur Rahman, and Rajshahi region’s MP Enamul Haque each received one power plant.
Quick Rental was institutionalized through legislation to ensure permanent looting. Whether the plant runs or not, the government must regularly pay the 'capacity charge'. This looted money was divided into three parts. One part went to Nasrul Hamid Bipu. The money was collected on his behalf by his ‘career brother’ Apu.
Some Tk 89,740 crore was paid to rental, quick rental, and IPP (Independent Power Producer) plants as capacity charges from the fiscal year 2008-09 to the fiscal year 2021-22. An IMED (Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division) report from July last year noted that over Tk 90,000 crore was paid in capacity charges during those 14 years. According to a PDB official, if the figures from the fiscal year 2022-23 and 2023-24 are added, the total will exceed Tk 1 lakh crore.
As per available information, during this period, Summit Group received about Tk 10,623 crore as capacity charges, which is about 12 per cent of total expenditures.
Summit’s main patron was Sheikh Hasina’s son Sajeeb Wazed Joy. It was because of Joy that Summit became the ‘Don’ of the power sector. In second place is the UK-based company Aggreko International, which received Tk 7,932 crore. Aggreko looted the power sector in Bangladesh under the patronage of Ridwan Mujib Siddiq Bobby. Most of the looted funds went to Bobby.
Aggreko’s shadow agent in Bangladesh was S Alam.
The Chinese company Erda Power Holdings, in third place, received Tk 7,523 crore. Erda Power’s unofficial agent in Bangladesh was Abul Kalam Azad.
Fourth on the list is the local United Group, which received Tk 6,575 crore.
Fifth is the Rural Power Company Limited (RPCL), which received Tk 5,117 crore. Bangla CAT Group received Tk 5,067 crore under the name of capacity charges.
The Payra coal power plant, a Bangladesh-China joint venture that started production just three years ago, received Tk 4,550 crore. Another group received Tk 4,525 crore, and Khulna Power Company (KPCL) received Tk 4,054 crore.
KPCL is listed on the stock market—35 per cent of its shares are owned by Summit, another 35 per cent by United, and the remaining 30 per cent by general investors. So most of KPCL’s capacity charge money went to Summit and United.
Apart from Quick Rental, thousands of crores were spent on transmission and distribution line construction, meter purchases, and electrification projects under the name of 100 per cent electricity coverage.
Projects were taken up at inflated costs for gas well drilling in various fields. Accurate accounting for these has not been found. The drilling of 20 wells was awarded to Russian state company Gazprom at more than $20 million each, though BAPEX (Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration and Production Company Limited) could have done it for $10 million.
Without proper tender notices and in exchange for illicit financial benefits, appointments were made in the power and energy sectors—this was noted by the government-formed White Paper Committee on Corruption. Their report states that tenders were invited under the guise of competition among companies of the same group. Senior ministry officials gave subcontracting advantages to close associates. Most of the looted money went to Nasrul Hamid Bipu, State Minister for Power and Energy. Part of Bipu's funds was used to run Bobby’s CRI (Centre for Research and Information).
Nasrul Hamid’s younger brother Intekhabul Hamid Apu, former bridge minister Obaidul Quader’s nephew, and Shahin Chairman of Keraniganj together formed a syndicate. This syndicate secured contracts worth thousands of crores by forming alliances with domestic and foreign companies. One such project includes around Tk 6,000 crore under DPDC, PDB, DESCO, REB, and NESCO for advanced metering, meter installation, billing projects, and network security.
Similarly, a company named Powerco International received an LPG project in alliance with two foreign firms. This project has not yet seen any yield. Allegations state that Powerco’s major shareholder, Kamruzzaman Chowdhury, is Bipu’s maternal uncle.
To invest the looted electricity money, Nasrul Hamid Bipu frequently travelled abroad. He was the state minister for power for over 10 years. During this time, he travelled abroad 38 times. Interestingly, on every trip abroad, he stayed in Dubai for at least two days. That’s where the looted money was received.
Bd-pratidin English/FNC
