The Asian Development Bank (ADB) approved a $175 million concessional loan to expand and improve electricity distribution in Bangladesh’s Chattogram Hill Tracts. The project targets at least 88,000 additional households across 26 subdistricts in Khagrachari, Rangamati and Bandarban; 35,000 of those households are expected to be in small ethnic communities.

Plans include six substations and 5,032 kilometres of distribution lines, alongside upgrades to 1,874 kilometres of existing lines. ADB expects the improvements to avoid at least 19,300 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions each year. The project aims to raise grid access in the region to 68% by 2032 and prepare infrastructure for future solar and pico-hydropower use.