CNN Central News & Network-ITDC India Epress/ITDC News Bhopal: Why will Bangladesh pay China more despite receiving cheaper electricity from India?
New Delhi: An interesting issue has emerged over Bangladesh’s electricity purchases. According to a report, Bangladesh is set to buy power from a Chinese company producing electricity from waste in Dhaka, and for this it will have to pay about 127 percent more than the average price of electricity it receives from India. The matter has come at a time when Bangladesh has objected to India’s proposal for a marginal increase in power supply charges.
According to the report, the price of electricity from the Chinese company is much higher than the average rate charged by Indian suppliers. This is why questions are being raised in Bangladesh’s energy sector over the cost of the deal.
How cheap is electricity from India?
Bangladesh has long imported electricity from India. Rates for Indian electricity vary depending on different companies and agreements. According to recent data, Bangladesh was paying about 7.58 taka per unit, including transmission charges, for power imported from the state-run NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam Limited (NVVN).
At the same time, electricity is supplied to Bangladesh by Adani Power from the Godda power plant in Jharkhand, India. The price of this agreement has already been a matter of dispute in Bangladesh, and a government review committee there had described it as expensive compared with market rates.
Then why buy costlier power from China?
The issue of buying electricity from China is slightly different from normal power imports. Here, the electricity is linked to a waste-to-energy project in Dhaka. In other words, this is not merely a case of buying ready-made electricity from another country, but a project that combines urban waste disposal with power generation.
In such projects, the price of electricity is determined not only by generation cost, but also by factors such as plant installation, waste management, technology, financing costs and long-term contracts. Therefore, a direct comparison with the rate of ordinary grid electricity imported from India cannot be considered an entirely like-for-like comparison.
Why are India-Bangladesh power ties important?
Electricity trade between India and Bangladesh has grown significantly in recent years. Power supply to Bangladesh from Adani’s Godda plant began in 2023. Later, the share of Indian electricity exports also increased in Bangladesh’s overall power mix.
However, questions have continued to be raised in Bangladesh over the price of the Adani Power agreement. In January 2026, a Bangladeshi government committee alleged that the price of electricity under the deal was higher than the market rate and that there were also procedural flaws in the agreement.
The overall developments make it clear that electricity purchases are no longer only a matter of energy needs for Bangladesh. Price, energy security, foreign investment and economic relations with India and China are also playing an important role.
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