Bangladesh resumes importing electricity from Nepal

Bangladesh has resumed importing electricity from Nepal through India's grid line, following a multilateral agreement that also involves India.

Zahurul Islam, a member (generation) of the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB), confirmed that the electricity supply from Nepal began on Sunday.

“We have started receiving 38MW of electricity from Nepal. According to the agreement, Nepal will supply electricity to Bangladesh for six months, until the 15th of November,” he said.

Last year, on Jun 11, the Awami League government approved a proposal to directly import electricity from Nepal.

At the time, the cost, including Indian transmission charges, was set at 6.4 cents per unit, roughly Tk 7.50, which is lower than Bangladesh’s current average production cost, exceeding Tk 11 per unit.

Once the interim government took office, a tripartite agreement was signed in Kathmandu in October to import 40MW of electricity. The BPDB signed the agreement with Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) and India’s NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam Limited (NVVN).

Following that agreement, Nepal supplied electricity to Bangladesh for a few days in November. It was later halted during the dry season.

As per the agreement, Nepal will resume supplying power to Bangladesh from Jun 15 to Nov 15.

Efforts to import Nepali hydropower had been under way for nearly six years under the Awami League government, starting in 2018. Although Nepal agreed to the agreement that year, the process was delayed due to bureaucratic hurdles and conditions set by India. The agreement was signed in November.