BD-Nepal agreed to 25-yrs agreement on electricity import

Syed Nasir Hossain: Bangladesh and Nepal have agreed to a 25-year agreement to import 40 MW of electricity. An official of the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) said officials from Kathmandu and Dhaka have agreed on the long-term deal, Kathmandu Post reported this. Although the two sides have not yet negotiated the tariff for this imported electricity, the duration of the agreement has been fixed. As a result, the long-term market of Nepalese electricity in Bangladesh will be ensured. NEA Managing Director Kul Man Ghisingh said, we have agreed to an agreement to sell electricity to Bangladesh for 25 years. This decision has been made according to our proposal to Bangladesh.
The Kathmandu Post also wrote that Nepali Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal visited India from May 31 to June 3. At this time, a similar understanding has been reached with Bangladesh, which has been initiated for the long-term inter-governmental power trade agreement with India. According to Prabal Adhikari, NEA’s Director of Power Trade Affairs, Nepal has already made an offer to Bangladesh citing uncertainty in the power sector. That said, Nepal prefers a 5-year contract.
It can be renewed. Bangladesh has responded to Nepal’s proposal. But according to Gheesingh, Bangladesh has finally agreed to a 25-year deal. However, this agreement has not been signed yet.
Ghisingh said, “We have reached an agreement on issues other than tariffs.” The agreement will be formalized only after the signing of a tripartite agreement between Nepal, India and Bangladesh to sell electricity from Nepal to Bangladesh using Indian territory. Nepalese officials say Bangladesh wants to settle issues other than tariffs first. The technical and commercial aspects of this agreement have been discussed. In view of that, both sides came to an agreement. The report also said the NEA was apparently open to compromise on tariffs. As a gesture of goodwill, we have planned good tariff proposals, Ghisingh said. Because the agreement will be between the government and the government. A reference may be the prevailing price of electricity in Bangladesh. But we haven’t decided on its rate yet. Prabal Adhikari said that when the issue of transmission charges, service fees comes up, Bangladesh will have to pay them directly to NTPC Vidyut Viper Nigam Limited (NVVN). Charges equivalent to what India currently levies from electricity consumers will be applicable on transmission. He further said that depending on the technical condition of transmission infrastructure including load, Bangladesh may have to pay 40 to 55 paise per unit transmission charge in line with India.
The report also said that the Bangladeshi companies may have to pay service fees for the efforts made by the Indian companies to get approval from the Indian regulatory body. Prabal Adhikari said, this service charge can be 4 to 7 paisa in Indian currency per unit. NVVN will be responsible for collecting these fees. NVVN will be a party to this tripartite agreement between Nepal, India and Bangladesh. Once Nepal and Bangladesh come to an agreement on tariffs, the tripartite agreement will pave the way. It also said that in mid-May, a meeting of the joint committee of the secretary level on energy affairs was held in Bangladesh. Nepal and Bangladesh then agreed to sign a tripartite agreement between NEA, Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) and India’s NVVN. India has said that it is ready to facilitate the trade of electricity between these two neighboring countries. Nepal welcomed them for the facility provided by the Indian government. Bangladesh and Nepal have decided to request India to approve this power trade through the high voltage Baharampur-Bheramara cross-border transmission link.