Nepal’s deadly floods halt 40MW electricity exports to Bangladesh

Nepal has halted the export of 40 megawatts of electricity to Bangladesh after deadly floods damaged hydropower plants and transmission infrastructure supplying the power, officials in both countries said.

The disruption followed devastating floods in Nepal’s Bhotekoshi and Trishuli river systems on August 26, which damaged several hydropower facilities and transmission lines.

Nazmul Huda, deputy secretary for company affairs at the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB), confirmed that Bangladesh stopped receiving electricity from Nepal following the floods.

“We received electricity on August 27. Then we did not receive electricity from around 9pm,” Huda told Waadaa.

He said the hydropower plant supplying Bangladesh was damaged in the flooding, making it impossible to continue exports.

“We used to receive 40 megawatts. We are not receiving that because of the damage,” he said.

Nepal’s electricity authority has also said exports to Bangladesh have effectively fallen to zero. 

According to The Kathmandu Post, two hydropower projects authorised to supply Bangladesh—Chilime, with an allocated capacity of 22.1 MW, and Trishuli, with 24 MW—were damaged and stopped generating electricity following the floods.

The disruption comes as Bangladesh faces severe electricity shortages. The country has experienced load-shedding of more than 3,500 MW in recent days, putting further pressure on an already strained power system.

Although the 40 MW supply from Nepal is small compared with Bangladesh’s overall electricity demand, it represents an important part of the emerging cross-border electricity trade between the two countries.

Nepal began exporting 40 MW of electricity to Bangladesh through India’s transmission network in 2024. The power is routed through India because Nepal and Bangladesh do not share a common border.

The two countries have also sought to increase the supply by a further 20 MW, but the additional power has yet to receive approval for transmission through India.

The existing 40 MW arrangement has been described by energy experts as an important first step towards expanding regional electricity trade.