53.85 MW Chameliya Hydropower Project will cost Rs 11.15 billion: EIA Report

Kathmandu; The 53.85 MW Chameliya hydropower project will require an estimated Rs 11.15 billion for its construction. But according to the website of the Department of Electricity Development, its capacity is 60 MW.

As per the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report of the project, the cost per megawatt of the electricity produced by the project will be Rs 206.046 million. The run-of-river project is being developed by the Department of Electricity Development. The project will be situated in Api Himal Rural Municipality-1 of Darchula district.

The project will be constructing a dam with a height of 6.5 meters and a length of 30 meters to divert water from Chamelia River. Similarly, steel made headrace pipe in 221 m length and 1.95 m diameter and a 43.72 m long siphon will be used to take water in the headrace tunnel. The tunnel will be of three meter diameter and 5.588 km long.  

Likewise, the surface penstock pipe will be 1,217.96 m long while the length of the underground penstock pipe will be 653.67 meters. The power house has been proposed to be built at the location 65 m above the confluence of the Golagadh River of Api Himal Rural Municipality-1.

A land size of 26.0466 hectares is estimated for the construction and operation of the project. Out of this, 23.7363 hectares falls in the state-owned Apinampa Conservation Area while remaining 2.3103 hectares will be the acquired private land.

The design discharge of the project is 7.12 cubic meters per second and the net head is 881.81 meters. This project will produce an average of 319.12 GWh of electrical energy annually. It will have 1,217.96 m long penstock pipe on the surface and 653.67 m of the pipe underground.

The project is targeted to complete its construction in the next four years. With the completion, a 33 km transmission line will be constructed to evacuate its electricity to Balanch Substation constructed in Shailya Shikhar Municipality-1 of the same district.