Bangladesh Power Development Board

The BPDB is currently facing a severe liquidity crisis with significant payment arrears to Independent Power Producers, impacting fuel procurement and power generation reliability.

Chairman Engr. Md. Rezaul Karim took charge as the 39th BPDB Chairman on September 1, 2024, per The Daily Star, Dhaka Tribune, New Age, and The Financial Express reporting on his appointment. He was formerly BPDB Member (Distribution) and holds a B.Sc. Engineering (Electrical) from KUET (1989). BPDB was established May 1, 1972, by President's Order No. 59 of 1972, dissolving the East Pakistan Water and Power Development Authority's power functions (ESCAP Policy Documents Database, bdlaws.minlaw.gov.bd). Adani arrears timeline: Bangladesh cleared $437M in June 2025 (covering through March 31, 2025); BPDB paid a further $30M via Bangladesh Krishi Bank LC in November 2025 to avert threatened supply suspension; arrears rebuilt to $688M by Adani's letter of April 17, 2026 ($393M undisputed per Pranav Adani); TBS News and Bonikbarta cross-confirmed. The $845M figure cited in a January 2026 TBS report covered a slightly different period and included penalties. Bangladesh appointed 3VP Chambers (London, KC Farhaz Khan) on January 30, 2026, for SIAC arbitration over coal pricing -- confirmed by Business Standard, TBS, and Bangla Mirror News. Load-shedding figures (71/143 plants idle, ~2,300MW gap, 870 MMCFD gas received vs 1,200 MMCFD needed) are drawn from The Daily Star, Prothom Alo (English), and Bonikbarta English-edition reporting from late April and early May 2026. Annual budget figure for BPDB separately is not publicly itemized on bpdb.gov.bd; the BDT 370 billion cited is the FY2025-26 whole-of-sector electricity subsidy allocation from the national budget, not BPDB's own operating budget. Staff count not published in accessible English-language official source. Verification based on 2+ primary sources for all material claims.