Nepal resumed exporting 40 MW of electricity to Bangladesh through the Indian grid on Friday evening after devastating floods in Bhotekoshi damaged two hydropower plants and halted the supply, according to Nepalese media reports.
The August 26 floods this year severely damaged the Trishuli and Chilime hydropower plants, which had been approved to supply electricity to Bangladesh. The disaster also affected Nepal’s electricity exports to Haryana in India.
Dhirghayu Kumar Shrestha, managing director of the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), said exports to Bangladesh could resume after India’s Central Electricity Authority approved electricity supplies from several other hydropower projects.
Under the new arrangement, Bangladesh will receive electricity from the Solu Khola and Kabeli B-1 hydropower plants. The Lower Modi Khola plant has been selected to supply electricity to Haryana.
The new decision replaces the previously approved Trishuli, Chilime and Devighat hydropower plants for the export arrangements.
Shrestha said restoring electricity supplies to Bangladesh and maintaining trade through other projects was highly significant for Nepal despite flood damage to hydropower facilities and transmission lines.
He expressed hope that Nepal would be able to make effective use of surplus electricity generated during the monsoon season and further expand electricity trade with neighbouring countries in the region.
The NEA and the Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) signed a five-year agreement on seasonal electricity supplies on October 3, 2024. Under the agreement, Nepal supplies Bangladesh with 40 MW of electricity annually from June 15 to November 15.
Nepal also earned Rs 5.925 billion by exporting 633.986 million units of electricity to India between mid-September and mid-October 2026, despite flood-related damage to several power plants, according to figures from the NEA Load Dispatch Centre.
The revenue was Rs 962 million higher than the Rs 4.963 billion earned during the same period last year. The income was also Rs 832.5 million higher than the Rs 5.0925 billion earned between mid-August and mid-September this year.
Nepal supplied electricity to the Indian states of Haryana and Bihar under bilateral agreements, while the remaining electricity was sold through competitive bidding in the day-ahead and real-time markets of the Indian Energy Exchange (IEX).
The NEA exports surplus electricity generated during the monsoon after meeting domestic demand. Nepal supplies electricity to Haryana and Bihar annually from June to October under medium-term bilateral agreements.
Nepal earned a total of Rs 16.1513 billion from electricity exports during the first three months of the 2026-27 fiscal year, according to the report.
Shrestha said the increased revenue between September and October was encouraging despite the closure of several power plants. Nearly two-thirds of Nepal’s electricity exports to India during the period were supplied under bilateral agreements, while the remainder was traded through the Indian Energy Exchange.