The First Meeting of the BIMSTEC Expert Group on Energy (1st EGME) was held in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar on 28-29 March 2019 at the invitation of the Government of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar. Delegations from all BIMSTEC Member States attended the Meeting. The Meeting was inaugurated by His Excellency U Win Khaing, Union Minister for Electricity and Energy of Myanmar. On behalf of the Secretary General of BIMSTEC, Mr. Han Thein Kyaw, Director (Development Division) of the BIMSTEC Secretariat delivered the Special Remarks at the opening session. The Meeting thanked Myanmar, the Lead Country for BIMSTEC Energy Cooperation, for taking an initiative to host this Expert Group Meeting for the first time.
After extensive deliberations, the Meeting finalized the draft Terms of Reference (TOR) of the BIMSTEC Grid Interconnection Coordination Committee (BGICC), which can be considered as one of the important outcomes of the Meeting. The Meeting also highlighted the importance of having the First Meeting of the BGICC before holding the Second Meeting of the BIMSTEC Expert Group on Energy (2nd EGME).
The Meeting proposed India to explore possibilities of holding the First Meeting of the Governing Board of the BIMSTEC Energy Centre (BEC) and recommended that the First Meeting of the Governing Board of the BEC may discuss the overall funding, institutional mechanisms, work plan as well as modalities of the effective functioning of the Centre.
It is hoped that Nepal will host the Fifth Meeting of the BIMSTEC Senior Officials on Energy (5th SOM-E) and the Third BIMSTEC Energy Ministerial Meeting (3rd BEMM) in the very near future. The Government of Bhutan has already committed to host the Fourth BIMSTEC Energy Ministerial Meeting (4th BEMM) in Bhutan.
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