The move is potentially significant for Bangladesh, which is trying to augment its own electricity generation to help it achieve 8.0 per cent economic growth. Its generation capacity is currently about 6,000 MW, against demand for more than 7,500 MW.
Inaugurating the Bangladesh-India Power Transmission Plant on Saturday, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said the country was also trying to import another 500 MW of power from India and was also making another attempt to purchase electricity through a tripartite agreement involving Nepal, India and Bhutan.
A grid interconnection between Bheramara in Bangladesh and Baharampur in India was completed at the end of August, officials said.
Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury, a government adviser to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who is responsible for the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources, said the imported power would cost 6.0 taka or 8.0 cent per unit, similar to the cost of Bangladeshi-produced electricity.
COMMENTS (28)
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@Observer: Pakistan nominal GDP is around 240 billion USD(nominal) and it is about 514 billion USD(purchasing power parity). Even in worst of time it is growing at a rate of 3.7 to 4 percent. This is a 2012 figure. The land mass of Pakistan is about four times that of Bangladesh( taken into account Gilgit Baltistan) which is under Pakistan control and erroneously shown in Indian Maps as part of India ( read it is a punishable crime not to show whole of Kashmir as a part of India). Of late Indian GDP growth has steeply declined to a new low of about 4 percent. Its GDP has actually shrunk to 1.84 billion USD(nominal) due to depreciation of Indian rupee against dollar.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EconomyofPakistan http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EconomyofBangladesh
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EconomyofIndia
Indian Trolls. Dont need your opinion.
@someone ok you are far far better GDP-wise than BD. what about security and peace??? Don't be negligent of the fact that your country is breeding ground of terrorism.Just being anti-Indian is not the way out. Think rationally and work for your country. good luck. :)
note: BD is also an Islamic Republic but more peaceful and cooperative. May be they follow a different form of Islam. It's better they got separated otherwise they would have also been facing sectarian violence.
6000 MW lol this is about 30% of Pakistan's total production. Pakistan produced this much during 80's. I don't know why some people are too arrogant from across the border wasting their time on Pakistani news sites in a bid to demoralize pakistani cyber populace.
@Someone: Yes it is a tin pot country that provides work for the population so that they do not need to become the epicentre of terrorism. Well dome BD.
Good decision - benefits both countries - something Pakistan should have done but they let emotions get in the way of logic.
@Kafir: With a tiny as economy (even Pakistani Punjab has larger GDP than Bangla Desh), huge impoverished population and a small congested area, I don't know from what angle you can say that. Bangladesh is just a little tin pot country.
South Asian countires can prosper much more by cooperating with each other !
@Khan saab, ofcourse Pakistan can generate electricity . but the problem is electricity generated with imported oil is very expensive. And just to maintain ' ego ' , paksitan is wasting lot of money of annual budget ,bringing poverty, inflation and IMF to pakistan. I badly remember a slogan '' we'll eat grass but we'll have a BOMB''. Have the same mentality for electricity too?
@Khan: that was a joke seriously
Let us ask our economists what is the opportunity cost of not having Electricity at a reasonable rate.The Leaders are going to keep us in perpetual misery and poverty, for they have feudal blood of centuries in their veins . Go Bangladesh go and become a Singapore.
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Why Pakistan can't do so with China and Iran to overcome its energy crisis and for cheap electricity?????
ET stop screening my posts. Pakistan will produce its own electricity, dont need india
Long live India-Bangladesh friendship. It is heartening to note neighbouring BD benefitting from cooperation with India and aiming for an eight percent growth rate, whereas its big brother Pakistan has failed in all fronts by following self-destructive policies. The main reasons for BD making progress at a fast pace are that it crushed fundamentalism with an iron hand, focused only on its economy, cooperation and maintaining peaceful relations with India. Pakistan should necessarily follow BD pattern if ever it wants to make progress and have peace both at home and with its neighbours.
Go Bangladesh, dream big, and i hope you acheive your 8% growth. Maybe others will learn from your success!
Trade between India and BanglaDesh is because of give & take, mutual respect. India has surplus power in North East -Tripura and Bagla désh is power deficit, hence it is a perfect match. Trade finally benefits Aam admi in long run..ideologies - political or religious can never feed empty tummies of common man. This trade deal on power is coming of age between two mature governments. Cheers !!!
Bangladesh is going ahead in economic development with the present govt.One of them is regional cooperation.Regional cooperation will help to establish economic development and peace.
@Indian Trolls: No thanks, not interested. Pakistan can generate its own.
Can find trolls whom were speculating India's relationship with its other neighbours!
India will be building world's largest thermal power plants also in Bangladesh.
The price of imported electricity per unit 6 taka ( six Bangladeshi rupees) is quite reasonable aka cheap while comparing to the existing price per unit i.e. .more than PKR 12.00.
Bangladesh is building two nuclear reactors with Russian help, too! Bangladesh is on the roll.
@Hafiz: Indian Bijli is not Halal and more over there is no surplus Bijli in Indian Punjab.
All asian countries are collaborating,....Like......
Sri-Lanka has 90% indian manufactured oil products,petrol pumps and automobiles both two,three and four wheelers..
Bangladesh...given example above..
Nepal..already nepali and bhutanese people can give and are eligible for all govt jobs in India....
Afghanistan.....Doing business with India as well as strategic partner...
One which is Left empty handed is one superpower....still beleive that somebody will come on camels and will make it for them..GHAZWA-E-Hind.....
@Hafiz: i am not sure what happened....there were deals going on between india and pakistan.....power surplus ( indian punjab) was supposed to export some to u.....maybe infra is not ready or something ....
and 0 MW for pakistan. LOL