BD-Nepal JSC meet begins June 25

A two-day meeting of the Joint Steering Committee (JSC) of Bangladesh and Nepal is set to begin at Cox's Bazar on June 25 to discuss four specific issues to import hydroelectricity from Nepal.
"We will discuss Bangladesh's investment in hydropower projects in Nepal, power import, Bangladesh-Nepal power grid line via India and capacity building and knowledge sharing issues in the upcoming meeting," Director General of Power Cell Mohammad Hossain told the Daily Observer on Saturday.
Bangladesh- Nepal meeting will also discuss the possibility of developing two hydropower projects with a total installed capacity of 1,600 MW with Bangladeshi investment. Bangladesh is interested in financing the 1,110 MW Sunkoshi II and 536 MW Sunkoshi III located on the Sunkoshi River in central Nepal.
A high-powered Nepalese delegation, headed by its Power Secretary, will arrive in Dhaka on June 24 to join the JSC meeting. Dr. Ahmed Kaikaus will lead the Bangladesh's team.
Bangladesh, Nepal and GMR Group of India, have been working to materialize a 500-MW of electricity export to Bangladesh from Nepal's Upper Karnali Hydropower Project for the last seven years. Meanwhile, Dhaka and Kathmandu have already signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for cooperation in the development of the power and energy sector.
Bangladesh also signed a preliminary contract with an Indian company, GMR Energy, to import electricity from its power project in Nepal.
According to the media report of Nepal, the major issues on the agenda include export of electricity to Bangladesh using Indian power lines, and attracting Bangladeshi investment in Nepal's hydropower sector as Nepal is expected to produce surplus electricity in a few years and ministry officials and the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) are scouting for markets for the extra energy in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh has planned to import 9,000-MW of electricity from Nepal over the next 10 years.