A joint technical team of Dhaka and New Delhi will now review the feasibility report of the Indian proposed "765 kV East-West Power Interconnector" project instead of its immediate implementation, reports UNB.
The decision was made at the 15th meeting of the Bangladesh-India Joint Steering Committee on Power Sector Cooperation held in north-eastern city of Sylhet yesterday.
Neighbouring India planned the East-West Interconnector Project to take electricity through Bangladesh to its Bihar province in the west from eastern Province of Arunachal by setting up hydro power projects.
As part of the plan, New Delhi offered Dhaka to install the portion of the long high voltage grid transmission line to be crossed through Bangladesh corridor by its own cost while India will control the whole grid system.
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Power Secretary, Dr Ahmed Kaikaus, led the Bangladesh side while Indian Power Secretary, Sree Ajay Kumar Bhalla, led the Indian side in the meeting, said sources.
In the meeting, they discussed the existing cooperation in the power sector between the two countries, including exporting power from Bangladesh to India in the future, importing power on the interconnection from Tripura to Bheramara, the progress of importing 250 megawatt (MW) electricity over the interconnection at Bheramara under a long-term agreement, and importing an additional 500 MW power by constructing an HVDC 2nd block.
They also held discussions on importing another 340 MW of electricity on the Surjyamani-Comilla North Link under a government to government (G 2 G) arrangement from NTPC power centers, interconnection of a proposed Katihar-Parbatipur-Barapukuria-Boranagar 765 KV grid, and constructing a back to back HVDC sub-station in Comilla, aiming to import more power on the Baharampur-Bheramar 400-KV 2nd transmission line and the Surjyamani-Comilla North Link.
The meeting discussed waiving all types of customs duties, tax, and VAT on the import of power from India.
It also discussed progress in the construction work of the Maitree Super Tarmal Power Project at Rampal.
