India, Bangladesh exploring proposal for cross-border refined-LNG pipeline
India today said it is exploring with Bangladesh a proposal for supplying refined-LNG through cross-border pipeline and establishment of an LNG terminal, and pitched for South Asian regional power co-operation.
"We are working assiduously
to promote the sub-region comprising Bhutan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Myanmar and
India as an energy hub," Indian Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla
said.
He was inaugurating the South
Asia Group on Energy (SAGE) organised by the Research and Information System
for Developing Countries (RIS) in New Delhi.
Shringla, former High
Commissioner to Bangladesh, said be it conventional sources, hydropower, solar,
wind or even petroleum products, "India is taking the lead to promote a
regional approach to our energy needs," reports our New Delhi
correspondent.
"Being the largest producer
and consumer of energy in the region, it is natural for us to be the epicentre
for any energy initiative in the region. We have to make energy affordable,
accessible and clean," he remarked.
Shringla said, "Energy
connectivity is one of the most dynamic sectors of cooperation in our
relationship with Bangladesh. Our cooperation in hydrocarbons' sector is
diversifying into the entire value chain of oil and gas sector."
The bilateral hydrocarbon trade
stood at USD 337.3 million in 2019-20, he said.
He pointed that India is
constructing the India-Bangladesh Friendship Pipeline from Siliguri to
Parbatipur in Bangladesh for supply of high speed diesel and that Indian energy
majors ONGC Videsh Ltd and Oil India Ltd have invested nearly US$ 24.26 million
in two shallow water blocks in Bangladesh.
Prime Ministers of India and
Bangladesh jointly inaugurated the project to import bulk LPG from Bangladesh
in October 2019 in a move that increases bilateral trade and ensures sustained
and affordable supply of LPG to the northeastern region of India, which is supplied
from Chattogram by Bangladeshi trucks to Tripura, Shringla said.
He said Indian Oil Corporation
Limited (IOCL) is currently undertaking a number of activities in Bangladesh in
coordination with Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) and Petrobangla and a
joint venture has been formed between IOCL and Beximco in June 2020 to further
expand its downstream business in Bangladesh and other countries.
"A proposal for supplying
R-LNG through cross-border pipeline and establishment of an LNG terminal are
also being explored," the Foreign Secretary said.
He said South Asian regional
cooperation in energy sector can attract higher investments and usher in complementary
infrastructure creation for transmission and transit, avoidance of duplication
of generation and distribution infrastructure, harmonisation of policy
framework across borders and a robust market place for best price discovery for
both buyers and sellers.
The Indian top diplomat said the
primary focus of South Asian regional energy cooperation is on electricity.
India is currently supplying
1160 MW of power to Bangladesh through two existing interconnections and the
two countries are in discussion regarding the construction of a 765kV power
interconnection through Katihar in India via Parbatipur in Bangladesh to
Bornagar in India, which when constructed, will reinforce interconnection of
grids in the region.
India is assisting Bangladesh
through concessional credit in construction of transmission lines as well as
power evacuation facilities from the upcoming Rooppur Nuclear Plant, Shringla
said.
"To translate our vision of
enhanced energy cooperation in the region, the most optimal solution is an
integrated regional grid," he suggested but at the same time pointed to
challenges like inadequate transmission infrastructure, unnecessary
duplication, lack of guarantee of power availability and offtake, insufficient
coordination among national authorities, technical differences and regulatory
mismatch.