MD QUAMRUL ISLAM RUBAIYAT and ASIFUR RAHMAN

The Barapukuria coal mine yard in Dinajpur is now storing more than twice its designed capacity, with stocks continuing to rise and raising concerns over fire hazards, possible heap collapse and declining coal quality.

The situation has developed as the nearby Barapukuria Thermal Power Plant, operated by the Bangladesh Power Development Board (PDB) and the mine’s only coal buyer, has reduced consumption after two of its three units were shut down due to technical faults.

The yard, which has a storage capacity of 2.2 lakh tonnes, was holding about 5.7 lakh tonnes as of Tuesday. An additional 1 lakh tonnes is stored in the PDB’s own yard, which has a capacity of 60,000 tonnes.

The surplus is increasing daily, as the mine is producing around 3,000 tonnes of coal against a demand of only 700-750 tonnes.

Md Shah Alam, managing director of Barapukuria Coal Mining Company Limited, a subsidiary of state-owned Petrobangla, told The Daily Star over the phone that frequent fires are now occurring due to the excessive stockpile.

“A dedicated team is working around the clock to keep the fires under control,” he said.

POWER PLANT OUTPUT REDUCED

Abu Bakar Siddique, chief engineer of the Barapukuria Thermal Power Plant, said the facility has a total generation capacity of 525MW (megawatt), with Unit-1 and Unit-2 producing 125MW each, and Unit-3 producing 275MW.

He said only Unit-1 is currently in operation, supplying about 55-65MW to the national grid. Unit-3 has been shut since October 19, 2025, while Unit-2 has remained out of service since 2020 due to a mechanical fault.

“Unit-3, with a capacity of 275MW, is expected to resume operations by May this year. The process to overhaul Unit-2 is also underway,” he said.

Siddique added that when Units 1 and 3 operate together, the plant will require around 3,200 tonnes of coal per day.

“At that rate, about one lakh tonnes of coal will be used each month, and the current stockpile could be cleared in seven to eight months,” he said. “We are also working to expand the PDB’s coal yard capacity by an additional 50,000 tonnes.”

TRADING BLAMES

Officials from both the mine and the power plant have blamed each other for the growing coal stockpile.

Plant authorities say they requested a temporary suspension of coal production, while mine officials argue that output cannot be stopped due to technical limitations, safety risks and contractual obligations.

“We had asked the coal mine authorities to reduce coal extraction to help control spontaneous combustion and reduce other risks, but we received no response,” Siddique said.

Md Shah Alam rejected the suggestion of halting production. “There is no scope to stop mining once it begins, as it could increase risks, including a higher chance of spontaneous combustion,” he said.

“We are now extracting coal in two shifts instead of three,” he added.

He also said the crisis has worsened following a 2019 policy change that made the power plant the mine’s sole buyer, removing the option to sell surplus coal in the open market through tenders.

Monir Hossain Chowdhury, spokesperson for the Energy and Mineral Resources Division, said once coal is extracted, it becomes the property of the power plant.

“We do not have any mechanism to send that coal elsewhere,” he said.

He added, “It depends entirely on the plant authorities. Due to reduced power plant operations, the mine is facing difficulties as it lacks storage capacity. We are concerned about the issue, and the Power Division is working to resume production at the plant.”