The long-standing issue of power scarcity worrying the Bangladesh textile and readymade garment industry is expected to improve after Bangladesh and Nepal have reportedly agreed to build a cross-border transmission line to supply electricity generated in Nepal to Bangladesh, as per media reports.
A decision to this end was reportedly taken following a meeting between the Bangladesh and Nepal delegation led by Secretary of Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Ahmad Kaikaus and Secretary at the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation (MoEWRI) Anup Kumar Upadhyaya in Kathmandu recently.
“The team will finalise the procedures and start the project as soon as possible. The meeting also decided to hold talks with the concerned Indian authorities to build the transmission line from either side of both the nations.” – Anup Kumar Upadhyaya, Secretary at the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation (MoEWRI), Nepal
As per Nepal’s Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, the country will soon be able to export 500 megawatts of electricity to Bangladesh, adding further that Bangladesh Government has already signed an agreement to import electricity from the Upper Karnali project, which has installed capacity of 900 megawatts.
It may be mentioned here that Bangladesh and Nepal have already agreed to focus upon electricity generation, development of hydroelectricity, cross-border transmission lines, development of efficient human resources in the hydel sector, promotion of government-to-government and private sector investment, among others.