40 MW of electricity will come through India in five months from this June. Bangladesh is officially starting to import hydropower from Nepal from today (June 15,2025). This initiative marks a new chapter in South Asian power trade, which will help further strengthen the foundation of energy security and economic cooperation in the region in the future.
40 MW of hydroelectric power will come through India
According to the Tripartite Power Sales Agreement signed between Bangladesh, India and Nepal, 40 megawatts of hydroelectric power will be supplied to Bangladesh via India every day for the next five month, from June 15 to November 15. This power will be supplied from Nepal’s hydroelectric power generating stations.
Fauzul Kabir Khan, Advisor on Power, Energy and Mineral Resources said,
“নেপাল থেকে বিদ্যুৎ গ্রহণের জন্য প্রয়োজনীয় সব প্রস্তুতি সম্পন্ন হয়েছে।”
Translation: “All necessary preparations have been completed to receive electricity from Nepal.”
Concerned people commented that the government’s commitment to diversifying Bangladesh’s energy sector and using environmentally friendly power sources has become clearer through electricity imports.
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In addition to importing electricity, Bangladesh is also considering the possibility of exporting electricity during the winter, as heavy snowfall disrupts hydropower generation in Nepal during the winter, and electricity demand in Bangladesh is relatively low during this time.
Keeping this reality in mind, Electricity Advisor Fawzul Kabir Khan said,
“আমরা শীতকালে বাংলাদেশ থেকে নেপালে বিদ্যুৎ রপ্তানির প্রস্তাব পাঠাব।”
Translation: “We will send a proposal to export electricity from Bangladesh to Nepal in the winter.”
He further said,
“এ বিষয় নিয়ে আলোচনার জন্য আমরা নেপালের বিদ্যুৎ ও জ্বালানি মন্ত্রীকে বাংলাদেশ সফরের আমন্ত্রণ জানিয়ে চিঠি পাঠাব, যাতে সম্ভাব্য বিদ্যুৎ রপ্তানি নিয়ে আলোচনা শুরু করা যায়।”
Translation: “We will send a letter to the Nepalese Minister of Power and Energy inviting him to visit Bangladesh to discuss this issue so that discussions on potential electricity exports can begin.”
Tripartite Agreement: An Example of Regional Energy Cooperation
On October 3, 2024, a tripartite agreement was signed by the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB), Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) and India’s NTPC Vidyut Bhatra Nigam Limited (NVVN) in Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal. This agreement created an opportunity for Bangladesh to import electricity from Nepal via India for the first time.
Bangladesh’s Environmental Affairs Advisor Syeda Rizwana Hasan was present at the agreement signing ceremony, who called the initiative “a historic example of environmentally friendly and sustainable energy trade.”
Source: TBS
