Bangladesh lost 8.2% of the electricity it generated to transmission and distribution losses in 2024. That is down from 12.0% in 2015 and 33.6% in 1990, and well below India (14.5%) and Pakistan (15.2%) in 2024. Only Sri Lanka (9.4%) is close among the South Asian peers; Nepal’s was 13.4%.
7.3% → 8.2%
Share of electricity output lost in transmission and distribution, 2022 and 2024.
The long-run improvement is large, but it has stalled. Losses fell steadily from 2016 to a low of 7.3% in 2022, then rose to 7.9% in 2023 and 8.2% in 2024. The series also shows a jump from 5.2% in 2007 to 12.5% in 2008 and a peak of 13.2% in 2013, so progress has not been linear.
The figure matters because every unit lost has already been generated and paid for. In 2024 electricity from oil, gas and coal made up 97.7% of Bangladesh’s electricity production (World Bank WDI, EG.ELC.FOSL.ZS). Cutting losses is therefore one of the cheapest ways to expand effective supply.
The World Bank’s definition includes “pilferage”, so the measure combines technical losses on the network with theft and billing gaps. The data do not separate the two, and they do not show why the rate has risen in the last two years.
Source: International Energy Agency, Energy Statistics, via World Bank WDI (EG.ELC.LOSS.ZS), 2000–2024.