Kathmandu: The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has received approval from India’s Central Electricity Authority (CEA) under the Ministry of Power to renew the export permit for 283 megawatts (MW) of electricity generated from eight hydropower projects in Nepal.
The renewed approval allows NEA to continue exporting electricity to India’s day-ahead and real-time markets through the Indian Power Exchange (IEX), as well as to the states of Haryana and Bihar under a bilateral medium-term power sales agreement. Nepal is also exporting electricity to Bangladesh using India’s transmission infrastructure.
Four hydropower projects that were previously approved to sell 103 MW of electricity in the Indian Power Exchange market have had their export permits renewed for another year, effective from last Tuesday.
Similarly, under the bilateral arrangement, about 180 MW of electricity from four other projects has been sold annually to Haryana state from June to October. The existing permit for this sale was set to expire on October 30, and the NEA had requested approval to sell electricity from these same projects in the Indian Power Exchange. The CEA has now approved this proposal, allowing continuous sales in the IEX from October 31.
During his recent visit to New Delhi to attend the 8th General Assembly of the International Solar Alliance (ISA), Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Kulman Ghising requested India’s Minister for Power Manohar Lal Khattar to simplify and expedite the process for electricity export approvals. He emphasized that this is the peak season for power generation in Nepal and timely approvals are crucial for maximizing electricity exports.
