Electricity Export to Bangladesh Begins for Five Months

Kathmandu: Nepal has once again started exporting electricity to Bangladesh this year via the Indian transmission line. Following approval for the export of 40 MW through the Indian grid, Nepal has commenced the export of an equivalent amount of electricity.

For the first time, on July 15, 2023 (2080 Kartik 18 B.S.), Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) exported electricity to Bangladesh for only 12 hours via the Indian grid -- from the 400 kV Dhalkebar substation in Nepal (Muzaffarpur-Behrampur-Bheramara) to Bangladesh. This year, electricity export began at midnight on June 15, 2025 (Asar 1, 2082 B.S.).

Last year, a tripartite agreement was signed among the NEA, Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB), and India’s NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam (NVVN) Limited for electricity trade.

Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, Deepak Khadka, expressed satisfaction over Nepal being able to export surplus electricity during the monsoon season to neighboring countries like India and now Bangladesh. “Exporting electricity to Bangladesh supports the entire regional business and lays the foundation for Nepal’s prosperity,” he said. “Nepal has been exporting surplus power during the five-month monsoon period to neighboring India every year.”

While electricity was exported to Bangladesh for just 12 hours last year, this year the arrangement has extended to five months, said Minister Khadka. The export, which began today, will continue until November 15, 2025. According to the NEA, around 146.88 million units of electricity will be exported during this period.

The NEA estimates that Nepal will earn approximately 9.4 million US dollars (around NPR 1.29 billion) from this five-month export. The agreed export tariff for electricity to Bangladesh is 6.40 US cents per unit (approximately NPR 8.83).

Meanwhile, the NEA has also been continuously exporting 185 MW of electricity to India since June 1, 2025 (Jestha 18). Starting Saturday, the export volume was increased to 200 MW. As per the Nepal-India bilateral agreement, the export rate to India has been set at INR 5.25 per unit. From midnight on Saturday, Nepal began exporting an additional 80 MW to the Indian state of Bihar.