Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NICCI) has welcomed the historic tripartite agreement between Nepal, India, and Bangladesh to facilitate electricity trade through India's grid, allowing for power trade between Nepal and Bangladesh.
This historic agreement marks a significant step toward the electricity trade paving the way for Nepal to export 40 MW of hydropower to Bangladesh via India’s transmission system. This is in line with the 2023 agreement between Nepal and India to trade 10,000 MW of electricity over the next decade a deal that has already commenced, the NICCI said.
Issuing a press note on Friday, the NICCI said, "The tripartite agreement, signed in Kathmandu on October 3, 2024 between Nepal, India, and Bangladesh, is a crucial milestone in promoting regional cooperation and cross-border energy collaboration toward the shared goal of sustainable green energy in South Asia."
The historic agreement was signed by Kulman Ghising, Managing Director of the Nepal Electricity Authority on behalf of Nepal, Mohammad Rezaul Karim, Chairman of Bangladesh Power Development Board, Renu Narang, and CEO of the Power Trading Corporation of India in the presence of Minister for Energy of Nepal, Deepak Khadka, Minister for Forests, Environment, Climate Change, and Water Resources of Bangladesh, Sayeda Rizwana Hassan, and Ambassador of India Mr. Naveen Srivastava.
As per the agreement, Nepal will get US 6.40 cents per unit of electricity sold to Bangladesh. If things go as agreed, Nepal will sell electricity worth Rs 7.39 billion to Bangladesh in a span of five years.
As a bilateral chamber established 30 years ago between Nepal and India, the NICCI has been advocating for the inclusion of power trade with Bangladesh and other neighboring countries via India’s grid, aiming to benefit not only Nepal but its neighboring countries as well.
