New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will virtually inaugurate the India-Bangladesh Friendship Pipeline today, March 18.

"This is the first cross-border energy pipeline between India and Bangladesh, built at an estimated cost of Rs. 377 crore, of which the Bangladesh portion of the pipeline built at an approximate cost of INR 285 crore, has been borne by the Government of India under grant assistance," reads a press release from the Ministry of External Affairs.

“The Pipeline has a capacity to transport one Million Metric Ton Per year of High-Speed Diesel. It will supply High-Speed Diesel initially to 7 districts in northern Bangladesh," the statement read.

Construction on the pipeline started in 2018 with the aid of India’s grant funding. The friendship pipeline runs from Siliguri to Parbatipur. “According to the MEA, the functioning of the India-Bangladesh Friendship Pipeline would set up a long-term, dependable, economical, and environmentally friendly method of transferring HSD from India to Bangladesh and will further strengthen cooperation in energy security between the two nations.

The power industry is included in India and Bangladesh's cooperation in the energy sector. In the area of power, New Delhi and Dhaka signed a Memorandum of Understanding in 2010. The first cross-border power link between the two nations was installed in 2013.

Indian Oil Company Ltd. (IOCL) was also recognised by Bangladesh as a legitimate government-to-government (G2G) exporter of refined goods. The cooperation on energy and electrical transmission lines accelerated during Sheikh Hasina's visit to India in September 2022.

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