January 4: Nepal is all set to sign a power trade agreement with India on Thursday. Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, informed that the agreement will pave the way for implementing the past agreement to export 10,000 megawatts of electricity to India in 10 years.
The ministry’s Spokesperson and Joint Secretary Navin Raj Singh informed that Energy Secretary Gopal Sigdel and his Indian counterpart Pankaj Agrawal will sign the agreement amidst a programme on Thursday.
Meanwhile, the high-ranking officials of the ministry informed that the two sides will inaugurate three important transmission lines on the occasion of the official visit of India’s Minister for External Affairs S Jaishankar, who arrived in Nepal on Thursday morning.
The two countries had agreed to inaugurate the transmission lines during Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal’s state visit to India last May. On the occasion, PM Dahal's Indian counterpart Narendra Modi had announced that India was going to import electricity produced in Nepal for a long-term duration. Modi made the announcement following the approval of energy import by the cabinet of India.
In order to materialize the past agreements, secretaries of both the countries will be signing memorandum of understanding during the ongoing Nepal visit of Minister Jaishankar.
The agreement will open doors for government and private companies for electricity trade by signing power purchase agreement for short, mid and long-term durations.
In the wake of Indian External Affairs Minister's visit to Nepal, a joint secretary (Energy Ministry) level meeting between Nepal and India decided to enhance the capacity of Dhalkebar-Mujaffapur 400-KV interstate transmission line. The meeting also discussed to speed up the construction of new Butwal-Gorakhpur cross-border transmission line, to construct two more cross-border transmission lines and to intensify mega projects. -- RSS