Kathmandu, Oct 7: Nepal is currently exporting an average of 1,000 megawatts of electricity daily, according to the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA). After meeting domestic demand, the surplus power is being sold to India and Bangladesh.

NEA Executive Director Manoj Silwal said that electricity exports since the beginning of the current fiscal year 2082/83 (mid-July) have generated around Rs 15 billion in revenue. Power is being sold to India through the Indian Energy Exchange (IEX) in the day-ahead and real-time markets at competitive rates. Nepal is also supplying electricity to the Indian states of Haryana and Bihar through medium-term bilateral agreements.

Using India’s transmission infrastructure, Nepal has been exporting 40 megawatts of electricity daily to Bangladesh as well. The trade with India is conducted in Indian rupees, while the one with Bangladesh is in US dollars, allowing Nepal to earn in both currencies.

NEA currently holds approval to export a total of 1,165 megawatts of power to India and Bangladesh. Nepal began officially exporting electricity to India on November 2, 2021.

The NEA said that with the steady rise in hydropower generation capacity, electricity exports are expected to increase further in the coming years.

People’s News Monitoring Service