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Power Trade with India | Bangladesh eyes 2,000MW more by 2018 | Pushes for long-term regional electricity exchange plan involving 4 countries
Frontpage
10
Power Trade with India
Bangladesh eyes 2,000MW more by 2018
Pushes for long-term regional electricity exchange plan involving 4 countries
Rezaul Karim
Bangladesh is negotiating with India to get at least 2,000 megawatts more electricity by 2018.
It hopes to get at least 1,500MW -- half of Dhaka's demand -- from Rangia Raota of Assam and 500MW from Baharampur of West Bengal, said diplomatic and the Power Division sources.
The country is currently importing around 500MW of power from Baharampur through Bheramara. It is also set to get 100MW this year from the Palatana power plant in northeastern Indian state of Tripura. India was allowed free transit and transshipment facilities to build the Palatana plant.
Last year, Bangladesh agreed to allow India a transmission of 7,000MW of power from Rangia Raota of Assam to Borakpur in Bihar through Barapukuria in Dinajpur. For the transmission, India will pay wheeling charge.
Dhaka has proposed that Delhi sell it 2,000MW electricity from the Rangia Raota project. India has so far agreed to sell 1,000MW.
“We expect India will provide us with 1,500-2,000MW electricity from this single project if we allow them to transmit power through our territory,” says a senior foreign ministry official.
The proceeds from wheeling charge (the amount charged for using transmission lines) can be used for power purchase.
Officials at the foreign ministry and the Power Division said Bangladesh will benefit if it allows India to transmit electricity through its territory, as it will get wheeling charge and can also buy 20-25% of the total power to be transmitted.
Diplomatic sources say India is setting up several more hydropower plants in its northeastern region and will need to use Bangladesh territory for transmission of electricity in future.
This has prompted Dhaka to plan on setting up a massive transmission line that will be able to transmit around 20,000MW of electricity. Dhaka believes that there can be such high-capacity interconnectors in Tripura-Comilla, Bongaigaon (Assam)-Jamalpur/Dinajpur-Purnea (Bihar), Shilchar (Assam) and Fenchuganj.
These interconnectors will also allow Bangladesh to import electricity from Bhutan and Nepal.
To strengthen transmission at home, the country is building a smart grid and upgrading its transmission lines to 400 kilovolt from existing 230 kilovolt in Ashuganj-Bhulta, Aminbazar-Maowa-Mongla, Anwara-Meghnaghat, and Matarbari-Anwara-Modhunaghat.
Bangladesh is looking forward to massive electricity exchanges in the region involving India, Bhutan, Nepal and Myanmar.
Officials say Nepal and Bhutan have the potential to generate 30,000MW hydropower and thus Bangladesh has initiated joint investment projects among Bangladesh-India-Nepal and Bangladesh-India-Bhutan.
The government is interested in importing electricity from two hydropower plants in Rakhine state of Myanmar. To this end, a high-level delegation led by prime minister's energy adviser Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury last month visited the country.
"We held a number of high profile meetings, including ones with the vice president and some top ministers of Myanmar, and made proposals on gas and electricity import and initiating joint ventures in the energy sector," said a member of the Bangladesh delegation, wishing anonymity.
"We received positive response from their side. Myanmar will soon send a technical team to Bangladesh to assess the feasibility of our proposals," he told The Daily Star.
Besides, the government is trying to import electricity under the Saarc Framework Agreement from Energy Cooperation (Electricity) and Bimstec Trans-Power Exchange and Development project.
The cabinet will soon ratify the Saarc electricity deal to pave the way for electricity exchanges among the Saarc countries by setting up common grid, using which excess power in one region can easily be used to meet deficit elsewhere.
Sources said New Delhi has made a move to facilitate integrated power grid for Saarc member states to begin cross-border trading on the Indian Energy Exchange (IEX).
The move will initially enable short-term buying and selling of power with Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan as these countries already have grid connectivity with India.
The IEX has sought consent from the Indian government for cross-border trading of 120MW with Bhutan and 50MW each with Bangladesh and Nepal.
A sub-regional strategic alliance of Nepal, India and Bangladesh have decided to jointly exploit their hydropower sector and use water resources management for mutual advantage, including jointly developing and financing projects in the Ganges river basin.
Similarly, Bhutan, India and Bangladesh have agreed to work in the Brahmaputra basin under a framework named Bhutan, India and Bangladesh (BIB) Initiative.
According to foreign ministry officials, Bimstec member states -- Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand -- are expected to ink a Memorandum of Understanding on Trans-power Exchange.
Dhaka will host the taskforce meeting on March 16 on the Bimstec Trans-power Exchange to sign the MoU, which will enable the member states to share their surplus electricity with each other through their national grids.
Frontpage
10
Power Trade with India
Bangladesh eyes 2,000MW more by 2018
Pushes for long-term regional electricity exchange plan involving 4 countries
Rezaul Karim
Bangladesh is negotiating with India to get at least 2,000 megawatts more electricity by 2018.
It hopes to get at least 1,500MW -- half of Dhaka's demand -- from Rangia Raota of Assam and 500MW from Baharampur of West Bengal, said diplomatic and the Power Division sources.
The country is currently importing around 500MW of power from Baharampur through Bheramara. It is also set to get 100MW this year from the Palatana power plant in northeastern Indian state of Tripura. India was allowed free transit and transshipment facilities to build the Palatana plant.
Last year, Bangladesh agreed to allow India a transmission of 7,000MW of power from Rangia Raota of Assam to Borakpur in Bihar through Barapukuria in Dinajpur. For the transmission, India will pay wheeling charge.
Dhaka has proposed that Delhi sell it 2,000MW electricity from the Rangia Raota project. India has so far agreed to sell 1,000MW.
“We expect India will provide us with 1,500-2,000MW electricity from this single project if we allow them to transmit power through our territory,” says a senior foreign ministry official.
The proceeds from wheeling charge (the amount charged for using transmission lines) can be used for power purchase.
Officials at the foreign ministry and the Power Division said Bangladesh will benefit if it allows India to transmit electricity through its territory, as it will get wheeling charge and can also buy 20-25% of the total power to be transmitted.
Diplomatic sources say India is setting up several more hydropower plants in its northeastern region and will need to use Bangladesh territory for transmission of electricity in future.
This has prompted Dhaka to plan on setting up a massive transmission line that will be able to transmit around 20,000MW of electricity. Dhaka believes that there can be such high-capacity interconnectors in Tripura-Comilla, Bongaigaon (Assam)-Jamalpur/Dinajpur-Purnea (Bihar), Shilchar (Assam) and Fenchuganj.
These interconnectors will also allow Bangladesh to import electricity from Bhutan and Nepal.
To strengthen transmission at home, the country is building a smart grid and upgrading its transmission lines to 400 kilovolt from existing 230 kilovolt in Ashuganj-Bhulta, Aminbazar-Maowa-Mongla, Anwara-Meghnaghat, and Matarbari-Anwara-Modhunaghat.
Bangladesh is looking forward to massive electricity exchanges in the region involving India, Bhutan, Nepal and Myanmar.
Officials say Nepal and Bhutan have the potential to generate 30,000MW hydropower and thus Bangladesh has initiated joint investment projects among Bangladesh-India-Nepal and Bangladesh-India-Bhutan.
The government is interested in importing electricity from two hydropower plants in Rakhine state of Myanmar. To this end, a high-level delegation led by prime minister's energy adviser Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury last month visited the country.
"We held a number of high profile meetings, including ones with the vice president and some top ministers of Myanmar, and made proposals on gas and electricity import and initiating joint ventures in the energy sector," said a member of the Bangladesh delegation, wishing anonymity.
"We received positive response from their side. Myanmar will soon send a technical team to Bangladesh to assess the feasibility of our proposals," he told The Daily Star.
Besides, the government is trying to import electricity under the Saarc Framework Agreement from Energy Cooperation (Electricity) and Bimstec Trans-Power Exchange and Development project.
The cabinet will soon ratify the Saarc electricity deal to pave the way for electricity exchanges among the Saarc countries by setting up common grid, using which excess power in one region can easily be used to meet deficit elsewhere.
Sources said New Delhi has made a move to facilitate integrated power grid for Saarc member states to begin cross-border trading on the Indian Energy Exchange (IEX).
The move will initially enable short-term buying and selling of power with Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan as these countries already have grid connectivity with India.
The IEX has sought consent from the Indian government for cross-border trading of 120MW with Bhutan and 50MW each with Bangladesh and Nepal.
A sub-regional strategic alliance of Nepal, India and Bangladesh have decided to jointly exploit their hydropower sector and use water resources management for mutual advantage, including jointly developing and financing projects in the Ganges river basin.
Similarly, Bhutan, India and Bangladesh have agreed to work in the Brahmaputra basin under a framework named Bhutan, India and Bangladesh (BIB) Initiative.
According to foreign ministry officials, Bimstec member states -- Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand -- are expected to ink a Memorandum of Understanding on Trans-power Exchange.
Dhaka will host the taskforce meeting on March 16 on the Bimstec Trans-power Exchange to sign the MoU, which will enable the member states to share their surplus electricity with each other through their national grids.
