Kathmandu: Nepal’s earnings from electricity exports surged in the fiscal year 2025-26 ending in mid-July, as the country exported growing volumes of surplus hydropower to India and Bangladesh during the wet season.
India remains the primary destination for Nepal’s electricity exports, while a portion of the power is also exported to Bangladesh through India’s transmission grid.
According to cross-border electricity import and export data released by the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), the state-owned utility responsible for power trading, Nepal earned a total of NPR 29.32 billion from electricity exports to India and Bangladesh in fiscal year 2025-26, representing a 67.96 per cent increase compared to the previous fiscal year. It is the highest annual revenue the NEA has ever generated from electricity exports.
The country earned NPR 17.46 billion from electricity exports in fiscal year 2024-25. Electricity exports increased from 2.3829 billion units (kWh) in fiscal year 2024-25 to 3.877 billion units in fiscal year 2025-26.
According to the NEA, the record earnings were achieved by selling electricity at an average price of NPR 7.56 per unit.
Nepal has been exporting electricity to India through the Indian Energy Exchange Day-Ahead Market (IEX-DAM), the Real-Time Market (IEX-RTM), and under a long-term power trading arrangement with NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam (NVVN) of India.
While Nepal’s export earnings rose sharply, its dependence on imported electricity declined significantly during the last fiscal year.
In fiscal year 2024-25, Nepal imported 1.6804 billion units of electricity at a cost of NPR 12.92 billion. In fiscal year 2025-26, electricity imports fell by 31.57 per cent to 1.1498 billion units. Consequently, Nepal’s total electricity import bill declined to NPR 10.56 billion, down 18.29 per cent from the previous fiscal year.
As a result, Nepal recorded a net electricity trade surplus of NPR 18.76 billion in fiscal year 2025-26.
“The figures highlight Nepal’s growing strength in the regional energy market,” the NEA said. “Increased domestic hydropower generation, expansion of cross-border transmission infrastructure, and improved energy management have enabled the country to emerge as a strong, self-reliant, and profitable electricity exporter in South Asia.”
Since Nepal was first allowed to sell electricity in India’s power market in 2021, the volume of electricity approved for export has steadily increased.
Initially, Nepal was permitted to export only 39 MW of electricity to the Indian market in 2021. It now exports more than 1,000 MW to India during the monsoon season. Bangladesh currently imports 40 MW of electricity from Nepal through India’s transmission network.
During the 13th meeting of the Nepal-India Joint Steering Committee (JSC), an Energy Secretary-level bilateral mechanism held in Nepal last week, the two countries agreed to increase the volume of cross-border electricity trade through two transmission line projects.
They agreed that Nepal would be able to export up to 1,650 MW of electricity to India and import up to 1,400 MW through the 400 KV Dhalkebar-Muzaffarpur and Dhalkebar-Sitamarhi cross-border transmission lines.
(IANS)
