Summit Group's Foreign Direct Investment Powers Bangladesh Energy Infrastructure

Bangladesh's electricity sector has undergone dramatic expansion over three decades, transforming from what Summit Group founder Muhammed Aziz Khan describes as a country where less than half of citizens had power access in the mid-1990s to achieving near-universal coverage today. The transformation was driven primarily by private sector capital flows, with Summit Group emerging as one of the country's most significant foreign direct investors in power generation through its structured international financing approach.

The company's foreign investment earned recognition when Summit Corporation Limited received the HSBC Bangladesh Business Excellence Award in the category of 'Inbound Investment & Infrastructure.'

The conglomerate's foreign direct investment model centres on Summit Power International, established in Singapore in 2016 through initial financing from the International Finance Corporation. A multinational corporate structure has enabled the company to channel over $2 billion (£1.47 million) in direct investment into Bangladesh's energy infrastructure.

International Capital Markets Address Financing Constraints

Summit Group's foreign investment approach tackles a fundamental obstacle in emerging market infrastructure development: prohibitive local capital costs. Bangladesh's domestic lending rates average approximately 14%, says Summit Group International CEO Ayesha Aziz Khan, creating financing expenses that would make competitive electricity generation extremely difficult to achieve.

Wu Yan Bin, Summit Power International's chief financial officer, explained how international financing access creates consumer advantages.

'Financiers are able to take comfort that there is certainty in terms of the cash flow through this pre-agreed tariff structure that is also indexed to USD,' he said. 'And that is why we have been able to unlock long-term USD financing from the international financiers.'

The financing framework has attracted major international institutions, including the International Finance Corporation, Asian Development Bank, Islamic Development Bank, German Development Bank, Swiss Export Credit Agency, and FMO Netherlands Export Credit Agency. These partnerships enabled Summit Group to achieve a 5% average cost of capital when Bangladesh's interest rates were 10-11%, said Muhammed Aziz Khan.

Regulatory Framework and International Compliance

Summit Group's Singapore incorporation grants access to established regulatory systems that international investors may consider more predictable than domestic alternatives. The company functions under Singapore's corporate governance requirements while maintaining extensive Bangladesh operations.

'One of the reasons that we did this structure—and IFC helped us to do this structure—is really to help us benefit from the robust governance framework of Singapore, the laws of Singapore, and the financial markets of Singapore,' said Ayesha Khan, managing director and CEO of Summit Power International. 'What Bangladesh has is a lot of opportunities and a lot of growth. But what it lacks is governance, and what it lacks is a mature financial market, both of which are very much necessary to do long-term infrastructure projects.'

Technology Partnerships Through International Investment

Summit Group's foreign direct investment model has facilitated partnerships with leading international technology suppliers. Japan's JERA Co., Inc. purchased a 22% stake in Summit Power International in 2019 for $330 million (£244 million), adding operational expertise in large-scale power generation and LNG infrastructure.

General Electric maintains an extended partnership with Summit Group encompassing both technology supply and equity participation. GE holds a 20% equity stake in Summit Group's Meghnaghat II power plant, while providing comprehensive engineering services and advanced gas turbine technology. This collaboration introduced the first HA-class gas turbine to Bangladesh, achieving efficiency levels, at 63.7%, that were previously unavailable in the country's power infrastructure.

Mitsubishi Corporation's partnership with Summit Group concentrates on LNG infrastructure development, including equity investment in Summit's floating storage and regasification unit. This collaboration addresses Bangladesh's expanding natural gas import requirements while utilising Mitsubishi's extensive LNG market experience.

Diversified Infrastructure Investment Portfolio

Summit Group's foreign direct investment extends beyond power generation into complementary infrastructure sectors. The company has developed telecommunications infrastructure, constructing more than 47,000 kilometres of fiber-optic cables nationwide. In 2023, Summit Towers purchased 2,012 mobile phone towers from Banglalink for approximately $100 million (£73.9 million), expanding its telecommunications infrastructure portfolio beyond 6,500 towers across Bangladesh.

Summit Group has also channeled foreign investment to port infrastructure. The company operates Bangladesh's first inland container depot and manages port terminals through Summit Alliance Port Limited. It secured a competitive bid to operate three inland water terminals on India's Ganges River system, becoming the first Bangladeshi company to manage port infrastructure abroad.

Cross-Border Renewable Energy Investment Plans

Summit Group has expressed interest in investing up to 1,000 megawatts in renewable energy projects across South Asia. These cross-border projects would supply renewable electricity to Bangladesh, addressing the country's relatively constrained domestic renewable energy potential.

'In the electricity space, Bangladesh has very little opportunity of producing green electricity within the country's 55,000 square miles,' says Muhammed Aziz Khan. 'But just outside, there is lots of availability of green electricity. We need to harness them and bring them to Bangladesh.'

Investment Climate Context

Summit Group's foreign direct investment activities occur within Bangladesh's broader efforts to attract international capital. The country hosted the Bangladesh Investment Summit 2025 in April, attracting over 550 foreign investors from approximately 50 countries.

However, Bangladesh's foreign direct investment inflows reached only $1.86 billion (£1.37 billion) in fiscal year 2023-24, six-year low. This broader context makes Summit Group's sustained foreign investment particularly significant for Bangladesh's energy infrastructure development.

'Human evolution, the desire to bring equality, and the desire to produce more requires electricity,' says Muhammed Aziz Khan. 'And I'm humbled and very pleased to be part of that.'