Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is supporting $50 billion in new energy infrastructure initiatives by 2035, aiming to connect power grids and expand cross-border electricity trade across Asia and the Pacific.
ADB President Masato Kanda made the announcement during the ADB’s Annual Meeting in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.
The Pan-Asia Power Grid Initiative will connect national and subregional power systems so renewable energy can flow across borders.
Under the Pan-Asia Power Grid Initiative, ADB will work with governments, utilities, the private sector, and development partners to mobilize $50 billion by 2035 for cross-border power infrastructure that can unlock renewable energy at scale.
The ADB’s announcement aligns with Nepal’s Energy Consumption Growth and Export Strategy, 2026, unveiled in the last week of April. The government is targeting to raise installed capacity to 28,500 MW, from the existing around 4,000 MW, by 2035.
The ADB’s initiative will focus on transmission and grid integration, including cross-border lines, substations, storage, and grid digitalization. It will also support power generation linked to electricity trade, including renewable energy export projects, regional renewable hubs, and hybrid generation-storage facilities.
By 2035, ADB aims to integrate about 20 GW of renewable energy across borders, connect 22,000 circuit-kilometers of transmission lines, improve energy access for 200 million people, create 840,000 jobs, and cut regional power sector emissions by 15%.
It builds on existing subregional cooperation initiatives, including the South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation program, the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation BIMSTEC grid interconnection planning, the ASEAN Power Grid, and the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Energy Strategy 2030.
