Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has earned Rs. 13.04 billion from exporting electricity during the first five months of the current fiscal year. According to the NEA, about 1.76 billion units of electricity worth Rs. 13.04 billion have been exported to India from July 16 to December 15, 2024, of the current fiscal year 2024/25. Nepal has been exporting surplus electricity to India during the rainy season for the last few years. The average rate of electricity exported to India in the five months is Rs. 7.39 per unit.
The electricity trade with India is done in Indian rupees. The highest electricity export was Rs 4.15 billion in the month of from July to August while the lowest was Rs. 281.4 million in the month of November to December. NEA exported electricity worth Rs. 3.68 billion in the month of August to December, Rs. 3.07 billion in the month of September to October and Rs. 1.87 billion in the month of October to November.
The NEA is selling the surplus electricity at competitive rates in the day-ahead and real-time markets of the Indian Energy Exchange and to the states of Haryana and Bihar as per the bilateral medium-term power sales agreement.
Nepal was planning to export more electricity to India this year, but it could not do so because of the damage of the 456 ME Upper Tamakoshi Hydropower Project as a result of the floods and landslides in September, said Kulman Ghising, managing director at the NEA.
From this year, 40 MW of electricity Nepal has also started exporting electricity to Bangladesh via Indian transmission line as per a tripartite agreement.
As the water flow in the rivers and canals decreases with the onset of winter, the electricity production of the hydropower projects will decrease. Nepal stopped exporting electricity to India after mid-December and started importing it instead. Currently Nepal is importing 300 MW of electricity from India, according to NEA officials. From the middle of May next year, Nepal will be able to export electricity again.
The NEA has so far received approval from India to sell 941 MW of electricity generated from 28 projects in the Indian market under the competitive market and medium-term power sales agreements.
