India to export 500 Mw power to Bangladesh through SAARC Grid soon: POSOCO

India is already exporting 500 Mw of power to Bangladesh according to stipulation and provisions of the bilateral provisions

India’s grid manager Power System Operation Corporation (POSOCO) is confident the country would begin to export an additional power to an extent of 500 megawatt (Mw) to Bangladesh as soon as the work on SAARC grid is accomplished in the next one year.

“We could also draw considerably higher volumes of hydropower from nations such as Bhutan and Nepal,” said V K Agrawal, executive director, National Load Despatch Centre at POSOCO.

He was speaking at the National Conference on ‘Power Transmission and Distribution’ of PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Indian government finalised a consensus over inter-country grid connecting the SAARC countries, which was pending for four years, in a meeting held with the representatives in the annual SAARC energy ministers meeting in Delhi in October 2014. Piyush Goyal, minister of state for coal, power and renewable energy had then said initial discussions would start for an integrated power transmission grid connecting India with its neighbouring nations, wherein excess production of power in one region can be used to meet deficit elsewhere

“In view of the deepening and thickening bilateral relations between India and Bangladesh following conclusion of the recent summit level talks between the prime ministers of the two countries, a decision has been taken to supply additional 500 mW of gas-fed electricity to Bangladesh,” said Agrawal.

India is already exporting 500 mW of power away to Bangladesh according to stipulation and provisions of their bilateral provisions. Agarwal said the government has recently concluded that another 500 mW power supply be restored to Bangladesh with completion of SAARC grid, which is likely to take a year.

The SAARC grid, which would connect India with its neighbouring countries with cross-border transmission network, is currently in the evolution phase.

India-Bhutan, India-Nepal and India-Bangladesh grids are interconnected and cross-border trade in bilateral mode is already taking place. India-Sri-Lanka asynchronous interconnection is under the process of finalisation. With regard to India-Pakistan, a suitable cross-border link is being considered.