KATHMANDU: During the Third Investment Summit held in late April, the government had provided a window for investors to submit expressions of interest, even without immediate investment commitments. The summit held in Kathmandu on April 28 and 29 initially offered a 45-day period for submitting letters of intent for energy projects and a 35-day period for non-energy projects.
With the deadline for non-energy projects only a few days away and the energy project deadline more than two weeks away, the government has extended the submission deadline for letters of intent for 12 projects in these categories by one month. A public notice published on Saturday informed that the deadline has been extended.
“The board has decided to extend the deadline to attract more applications and ensure greater competition,” an official of the Investment Board Nepal told New Business Age.
According to the extension notice, interested investors in the 12 different projects now have until July 2 to submit their letters of intent.
During the summit, a Japanese company expressed interest in the Nijgadh International Airport project, but no other letters of intent were submitted, raising questions about the success of the summit.
Ramji Danai, information officer of the board, stated that the extension of deadline aims to attract more investors.
"The board has the legal right to extend the deadline for submitting the letters of intent," Danai said, adding, "It is not possible to say how many letters of intent have been received during this period. Since e-bidding will be conducted, the Public Procurement Monitoring Office (PPMO) will also be involved, making it impossible to determine the number of letters of intent received before the deadline."
Danai emphasized that the deadline extension is intended to promote transparency, competition, and attract more investors to the projects. The extended deadline applies to both energy and non-energy projects. Currently, out of the projects with extended deadlines, seven letters of intent have been requested from the private sector.
Danai also noted that the board will focus on 12 projects. On the second day of the investment summit, a Japan-based international bank had expressed interest in the proposed Nijgadh International Airport, but has not formally entered the competition. "During the conference, they sent a letter stating their interest in constructing the airport," Danai said. "However, no formal letter of intent has been received for this project."
During the summit, a total of 154 projects were presented, including 19 projects for which letters of intent were requested and nine projects for market sounding (collecting investors’ feedback). These included the 650 MW Kaligandaki-2 and 337.1 MW Bharbung Reservoir Hydro Projects.
The summit resulted in agreements to fund domestic and foreign investments worth Rs 6.5 billion. Investment agreements were signed for three projects, along with seven various cooperation agreements. An agreement was also reached for the construction of a data center, cloud service, and artificial intelligence platform in the country with an investment of Rs 3.5 billion.
Additionally, a hotel construction agreement worth Rs 1.09 billion was signed for a site in Gorusinge, Kapilvastu. An agreement to build a resort at Rara in Mugu was also reached between private sector companies.
