GBB Power shuts down plant as contract expires

GBB Power Limited has shut down its natural gas-fired power plant as the power purchase agreement with the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) has expired.

According to the company's disclosure on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) website on Sunday, the agreement expired on 16 June.

The company has already applied for contract extension to the power division of the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources.

In the disclosure, GBB Power said the plant will remain shut until further instructions from the BPDB or the ministry.

Company Secretary Mohammad Sattar Hossain said, "The management is hopeful about the contract extension. We are waiting for a reply from the ministry to make any decision."

Established in 2006, GBB Power got listed on the stock exchanges in 2012.

It has been supplying a minimum of 21.03 MW of electricity to the BPDB, according to the company's website.

In the fiscal 2021-22, it made a profit of Tk10.3 crore and paid a 3% cash dividend to the shareholders.

Earlier, the company's auditor Kazi Zahir Khan and Co expressed concerns about its ability to survive after the contract expiry of its sole power plant, prompting a selloff of the company's shares.

But because of the floor price set by the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC), there were not enough buyers for these shares.

According to DSE data, the company's shares began to decline in September 2021. At that time, each share was priced at Tk50. From there, the shares fell by 60% to Tk19.8 at the floor price set in October last year. Now, the shares are stuck at the floor price of Tk15.1 each.

From July to March of the current fiscal year, the company's revenue stood at Tk61.53 crore, which was Tk50.36 crore in the same period of the previous fiscal.

Its net profit stood at Tk8.15 crore, which was Tk8.84 crore a year ago.

Its earnings per share stood at Tk0.8 and net asset value per share at Tk20.77 at the end of March 2023.