MYANMAR and Bangladesh have agreed to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to build a large hydropower plant in Myanmar to feed the neighbouring country’s national grid, the UNB news agency reported.

The agreement was reached during the July 10-13 visit of a Bangladeshi delegation to Myanmar, Power Secretary Dr M Fouzul Kabir, who led the delegation, told reporters.

A delegation will make a follow-up visit to Myanmar in November and sign the MoU to conduct a joint techno-economic feasibility study to build the planned hydropower plant in Rakhine State, Kabir added.

He said three locations are being considered as potential sites for the hydroelectric plant. But among those, a site on the Lemro River of Rakhine State is most promising as it has the potential to support a 500-600 megawatt plant.

This site is approximately 100 kilometres from Bangladesh.
Kabir said both countries would examine all possible options relevant to the realisation of the massive venture.

“Either it could be a government-government joint-venture project or a private-public joint venture between the two countries,” he said.

Everything would be decided after the feasibility study, he added.

In June, Bangladesh’s Economic Relations Division (ERD) said it would request funding for the project from “some multilateral and bilateral donors”, including the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, and Japan. – Xinhua