Nepal welcomes Bangladeshi investments

Nepal will welcome all kinds of private and public sector investments from Bangladesh, said its energy, water resources and irrigation secretary Dinesh Kumar Ghimire on Saturday.

He conveyed his country's message to Bangladesh while meeting the state minister for power, energy and mineral resources, Nasrul Hamid, at his Baridhara residence.

Dinesh Kumar came Bangladesh leading a Nepal delegation to attend the joint working committee meeting on Bangladesh-Nepal power development cooperation held in Cox's Bazar on 21 June.

The Nepal secretary informed that the Himalayan nation will cooperate with Bangladesh to boost the trade and business between the two countries, according to a press release by the power, energy and mineral resource ministry.

He said both the nations need to explore new areas of cooperation.

Dinesh Kumar also invited Nasrul Hamid to join the SAARC energy ministers' meeting in Nepal scheduled to be held in the second week of August.

Informing the Nepal secretary of different ongoing infrastructural development projects in the country, Nasrul Hamid said Bangladesh has created a huge investment opportunity. "For these projects, Bangladesh needs huge electricity. We're keenly interested to import electricity from Nepal and Bhutan," he said, adding that this electricity even could be produced abroad too by investing there.

He said some Bangladeshi private enterprises are showing their keen interest to invest in Nepal's power sector.

Managing director of Nepal electricity authority Kulman Ghishing, joint secretary of Nepal's ministry of energy, water resources and irrigation Probin Raj Areial and Nepal ambassador in Dhaka Dhan Bahadur Oli were also present.

The working committee meeting on Bangladesh-Nepal power sector cooperation in Cox's Bazar discussed different issues on two nations' cross-border electricity trade, hydropower sector development by Bangladesh private sector investors, import of 500 MW hydropower from Nepal and cooperation on development of solar home system in Nepal.