Kathmandu: In a landmark agreement, India, Nepal, and Bangladesh have signed a trilateral deal to export 40 megawatts of electricity from Nepal to Bangladesh, utilizing India’s power grid for the first time. The agreement, finalized in Kathmandu, marks a significant expansion of Nepal’s electricity trade, which has primarily been limited to India until now.
Under the terms of the agreement, Bangladesh will import electricity through the existing transmission infrastructure in India. The power will be transmitted from Nepal to India via the 400 KV Dhalkebar-Muzaffarpur cross-border transmission line, with the Indian grid facilitating its onward delivery to Bangladesh.
The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) will measure the exported energy at the Muzaffarpur point, anticipating earnings of approximately 330 million rupees from the sale.
Additionally, during the meeting, the three nations agreed to collaborate on the development of the Sunkoshi-3 hydropower project and finalize a joint venture agreement in the next session. They also plan to conduct a feasibility study for a proposed cross-border transmission line dedicated to energy trade between Nepal and Bangladesh.