Bangladesh Panel Flags Overpricing, Procedural Flaws in Adani Power Deal

A government-appointed committee in Bangladesh has found that electricity imported from an Adani Power coal-fired plant in India is significantly overpriced and includes charges that should not typically be passed on to a foreign buyer. According to the panel’s report, Adani billed Indian corporate taxes to Bangladesh and priced power from its Godda plant in Jharkhand at nearly a 40% premium compared with its closest private-sector competitor. The report, dated January 20, has not yet been made public but was reviewed by Reuters.

The National Review Committee said the higher tariffs stemmed from specific contractual choices and flagged “serious anomalies” in the procedures used to award the contract. It described the coal used by the plant as “excessively priced” and noted that the agreement showed the steepest cost escalation among Bangladesh’s electricity import deals from India. Overall, the committee estimated that Bangladesh is paying roughly 50% more than it should for the power, calling the deal the most significant outlier in its cross-border electricity procurement.

Adani Power said it could not comment on the findings as it had not been consulted or formally shared the report, but stressed that it continues to supply electricity despite large unpaid dues from Bangladesh. The company urged the government to clear outstanding payments, saying delays were affecting operations. The committee recommended reviewing existing power contracts to explore renegotiation of the most fiscally damaging provisions, adding that international practice typically requires power producers to bear their own corporate taxes in their home country.

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