Nepal has started exporting electricity to Bangladesh, marking a historic milestone in regional electricity trade. Bangladesh has become the second country, after India, to receive electricity produced in Nepal. Nepal’s Energy, Water Resources, and Irrigation Minister Deepak Khadka, India’s Electricity Minister Manohar Lal, and Bangladesh’s Advisor to the Ministry of Power, Energy, and Mineral Resources Mohammad Fouzul Kabir Khan jointly inaugurated the export through a virtual ceremony on Friday, November 15.
Export Route and Infrastructure
Nepal transmits electricity to Bangladesh via India’s transmission infrastructure. The electricity first reaches the Muzaffarpur substation in India through the Dhalkebar-Muzaffarpur 400 kV cross-border transmission line. From Muzaffarpur, it flows to Bangladesh through the Baharampur (India)-Bhermara (Bangladesh) 400 kV transmission line.
The NEA began the export on Friday at 12:30 pm and will continue it until midnight the same day. The regular export schedule will resume on June 15, 2025.
India’s Central Electricity Authority approved the export of 40 MW of electricity from Nepal’s Trishuli and Chilime Hydropower Projects to Bangladesh via India. The NEA will export this electricity during the six-month rainy season, from June 15 to November 15, each year for five years, with the export permitted until October 2, 2029.
The NEA is selling the electricity to Bangladesh at 6.40 cents per unit (equivalent to Rs 8.62 as of Friday's exchange rate). This is the first time Nepal is earning income in dollars from electricity sales, unlike its transactions with India, which are conducted in Indian rupees.
On the first day, the NEA is expected to earn $28,160 (Rs 3.79 million) by exporting 40 MW of electricity for 11.5 hours. The NEA collects payments at the Muzaffarpur point in India and bears the technical losses for the transmission line from Dhalkebar to Muzaffarpur. Bangladesh covers all other costs, including transmission charges, technical losses beyond Muzaffarpur, and trading margins levied by India.
Tripartite Agreement and Approval Process
The NEA, India’s NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam (NVVN), and Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) signed a tripartite Power Sales Agreement (PSA) on October 3. After signing the agreement, the NEA submitted a list of hydropower projects to India’s Central Electricity Authority for approval. The authority approved the request on Thursday, allowing the NEA to begin exports the following day.
BPDB invited bids on January 1, 2024, to purchase 40 MW of electricity from Nepal for five years under the tripartite agreement. The NEA submitted its bid, including electricity rates, in the required format. After BPDB approved the bid, the tripartite PSA process moved forward, enabling the electricity trade. -- RSS
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