Urja Khabar
Kathmandu : A number of agreements made between Nepal and India during the visit of Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal to India a few months ago have entered the implementation phase, said the Embassy of India, Kathmandu.
A landmark development in bilateral cooperation is the progress in the Nepal-India cross-border electricity trade. During the PM's visit in May, India pledged to materialize its commitment to purchase 10,000 MW of electricity from Nepal over the next decade.
India has also granted approval for the import of an additional 180 MW of electricity, allowing Nepal to export 631 MW of electricity to India. This move is complemented by the opening of platforms for medium-term and real-time markets for power export, in addition to the Day-Ahead-Market.
Furthermore, India has activated a 132 kV Tanakpur-Mahendranagar transmission line for power export from Nepal.
According to the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), electricity produced by hydropower plants such as Chilime (a subsidiary of the NEA), Solu Khola, Kabeli B-1, Likhu-4, Lower Modi, Solu-Dudhkoshi, Dordi Khola, Upper Kalanga Gad, and Upper Chamelia can now be exported under revised conditions.
Of the added electricity, 110 MW is generated from Solu Khola (Dudh Koshi) and Dordi Khola hydropower projects, transmitted via the Dhalkebar-Muzaffarpur cross-border transmission line. Additionally, 70 MW generated by Upper Kalanga Gad and Chameliya hydropower projects is supplied through the 132 KV Tanakpur-Mahendranagar transmission lines.
Further bolstering the Nepal-India development partnership since the visit of Nepal's PM is the operationalization of the Kurtha-Bijalpura rail link, enhancing people-to-people connectivity, the Indian Embassy stated in a press release.
