Announcement on Bangladesh-Nepal power trade deal likely this year

An announcement on a power trade agreement between Nepal and Bangladesh is likely to be made this year.

Nepal’s Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Shakti Bahadur Basnet came up with the information while talking to journalists at Bharatpur airport in Nepal on Tuesday, according to Nepalese news outlets.

“Some topics remain to be formalised and this is also in the final phase. It goes into execution once the agreement is signed,” the minister said.

Minister Basnet further added that Nepal is going to be self-sufficient both in the dry and monsoon period, saying, "We are going to be fully self-sufficient in electricity and all the problems will be resolved after this."

Meanwhile, Nepal’s Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal also hinted at the imminent conclusion of a power trade deal between Bangladesh and Nepal.

During a programme on Tuesday, he highlighted the theoretical agreement reached among Nepal, India and Bangladesh to export electricity from Nepal to Bangladesh.