Nepal starts importing 650 MW electricity from India

Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has started importing 650mw of electricity from India as the demand for electricity in the country has surpassed the amount of electricity generated in Nepal.

According to Suresh Bahadur Bhattarai, NEA spokesperson, electricity generation in the country has declined with the decrease in the water level of the river owing to the onset of the winter season.

He informed that the NEA started to import electricity from India this Friday.

Currently, some 900mw of electricity, out of a total installed capacity of 1802mw, is being produced in Nepal and there is demand for 1550mw that makes a deficit of 650mw per day to meet the demand, he added.

Reservoir-based Kulekhani hydropower project is also operated to manage the demand during the peak hours of the evening and the morning.

Nepal was facing problems to consume the electricity produced in the country as 456mw electricity of the Upper Tamakoshi Hydropower was added to the national grid during the monsoon period.

However, with the dry winter, the water level in the river decreases and consequently, most hydropower projects are running less than 60 per cent of their capacity, according to the NEA.