Nepal and India have reached an agreement to increase the electricity export limit from Nepal to 1,650 MW during the joint energy secretary-level meeting.
Decisions on Power Export and Import
In the meeting of Nepal-India Joint Steering Committee, both sides have agreed on exporting 1,650 MW of electricity from Nepal. Currently, the export limit is 1,100 MW, but now it will be increased to 1,650 MW. This was shared by Sandeep Kumar Dev, who is the joint secretary at Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation.
For importing power, the meeting agreed to import 1,400 MW electricity from existing Dhalkebar-Muzaffarpur and Dhalkebar-Sitamarhi cross-border transmission lines.
Transmission Line Updates and Deadlines
The joint meeting also approved detailed project report of Chameliya-Jauljibi 220 kV double circuit transmission line. They have set target to complete this project by December 2028. To build New Purnia and Dododhara-Bareilly 400 kV cross-border transmission lines, both side agreed to speed up process of establishing joint venture company.
Furthermore, technical studies will be done for Motihari-Nijgadh 400 kV double circuit line and Lucknow-Kohalpur 400 kV transmission line. The New Butwal-Gorakhpur 400 kV transmission line will be operated in 220 kV for now. The construction of Nepal section of this line will finish by August 2026 and substation will be ready by December 2027. Through this line, Nepal can import 130 MW and export 200 MW of electricity immediately.
Details of the Meeting
This 13th meeting of steering committee was held in Pokhara. It was co-chaired by Energy Secretary of Nepal Sarita Dawadi and Power Secretary of India Pankaj Agarwal. Before this, the 13th meeting of Joint Working Group was also held in Pokhara on Tuesday, co-chaired by Sandeep Kumar Dev and Pankaj Kumar from Indian side.
In these meetings, officials discussed on various topics like hydro project development, power trade, transmission infrastructure, solar energy, and green hydrogen. Both sides praised the progress of 400 kV Gorakhpur-New Butwal line and agreed to facilitate fast construction of other projects.
AI Disclaimer: This article was originally published on https://bajarkochirfar.com. It has been translated with the help of AI. For the best understanding and accurate facts, we recommend reading the original Nepali version.
