Power grid failure: Probe launched to determine cause

Power Grid PLC has formed an investigation committee to determine the cause of the power grid failure that affected a large part of the country on Tuesday.

The information was announced in a press release issued by the company.

According to the release, a five-member committee has been formed, headed by Syed Ebadullah Haider Ali, chief engineer (additional charge) of Transmission-2, to identify the actual cause of the power outage and formulate opinions and recommendations on measures to prevent a recurrence.

The committee has been asked to submit its report within the next five working days.

Power went out in eastern Dhaka and parts of Chattogram at around 12.45 pm on Tuesday. Several power plants were shut down following the grid failure. They began restarting one by one about two hours later, and supply gradually increased.

Power Grid said engineers were working to restore connections in stages to normalise electricity supply. The national grid is operating under the control of the National Load Despatch Centre (NLDC). Electricity supply remains operational and normal in the northern region and other parts of the country.

Major failures have occurred in the national grid before. On 4 October 2022, a failure began in the eastern grid at 2.05 pm, leaving large parts of the country, including Dhaka, Chattogram, Sylhet and Mymensingh, without electricity. Supply was gradually restored over the following three to eight hours.

Earlier, a national grid failure on 1 November 2014 disrupted electricity supply across the country for nearly 12 hours.