The government approves NEA’s loan of Rs. 10 billion
The NEA has secured approval from the Ministry of Finance for a short-term loan of Rs. 10 billion to cover existing liabilities and manage liquidity. The approval comes after NEA’s Managing Director, Hitendra Dev Shakya, celebrated 100 days since taking office. The Minister of Finance has approved a Rs. 20 billion bond for the expansion of the production, transmission, and distribution system. Work has been progressed on energy security, reliable electricity supply, financial management, transparent data, and human resource management. The pre-feasibility studies for the Kulekhani Sisneri and Hulingtar-Dumkim projects have been completed, and license applications have been submitted.
Initiatives have been made to support BESS licensing for hydropower projects. Shakya announced the formation of a committee for transmission line maintenance, completion of Dhungesanghu-Basantapur second circuit, and upgrading Balaju substation. He also reported 40 MW electricity exports to Bangladesh and 625 MW daily to India. Nepal aims to increase installed capacity to 28,500 MW by 2035. The NEA reports that PPAs for 170 MW solar projects with eight different businesses have been concluded, and 63 projects were chosen from the RFP for 960 MW solar projects under the Energy Mix initiative that was sent out through the TBCB.
