Plans to upgrade cross-border transmission infrastructure to increase electricity trade have been approved by India and Nepal.
During the 14th Joint Technical Team (JTT) conference, India and Nepal approved measures to improve their cross-border transmission infrastructure to increase power trading, according to India Narrative.
According to Sandeep Kumra Dev, joint secretary of the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources, and Irrigation, “The understanding will go into implementation, once the next JSC meeting endorses the understanding,” according to India Narrative.
The action is significant for Nepal since the nation wants to upgrade its transmission system in order to increase electricity exports to India and other nearby nations. When Nepali Prime Minister Puspa Kamal Dahal visited New Delhi on June 1, PM Modi pledged that India would purchase 10,000MW of electricity from Nepal over the following ten years.
The Dhalkebar-Muzaffarpur transmission line will be able to transmit up to 1,000MW of power under the most recent agreement, up from the previously agreed-upon 800MW. Up till this point, India has allowed Nepal to export up to 562.6 MW via this electricity connection. Rest from other cross-border power cables is exported by Nepal.
SJVN Limited, a state-owned company in India, founded SJVN Arun-3 Power Development Company. It is building a 2,000 MW capacity cross-border power line to transmit its own power. According to the choices made at the JTT meeting, Nepal may use the extra capacity of the 400kV Dhalkebar-Sitamarhi cross-border transmission line that is being built by SJVN Arun-3 Power Development Company.
Nepali team head Dev stated during the JTC meeting that “As Arun-3’s capacity is 900MW, there will be spare capacity in this transmission line until SJVN also develops 669MW Lower Arun and 490MW Arun-4 projects.”
Both nations also agreed to construct the 132 kV Kohalpur-Nanpara line by July of next year and the 132 kV New Nautanwa-Mainaiya line, both of which can be utilized for power imports and exports, by October of this year. In addition, according to India Narrative, both nations agreed to conduct a collaborative technical visit to evaluate the viability of constructing a 220kV cross-border transmission line from Nepal’s Mahendranagar to India’s Tanakpur.
