The government has decided to
finalize details for commencing the registration of a separate
Electricity Transmission Company within a week.
"A decision to this connection was taken on Thursday. We will have a concrete plan regarding the registration of the new institution within a week," said Energy Secretary Hari Ram Koirala.
Once established, he disclosed the new institution will handle all transmission related activities, freeing Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) from the transmission function. Koirala disclosed the government´s latest endeavor to expedite power sector reform when he interacted with the businessmen on existing power woes at Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI).
The private sector has been pushing the government to establish separate agencies to handle production, transmission and distribution of electricity in the country. So far, the NEA has been carrying out all these functions“ "NEA has been inefficient and consumers shouldn´t be the victim," Kush Kumar Joshi, former president of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) said.
Apart from the private sector, development partners such as India, the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank that have been assisting Nepal on the power sector too have been pushing for the structural reforms in the power sector. Their assessment is such reforms were crucial if the government was to end the country´s power woe and efficiently utilize the transmission lines being laid within and across the border.
So far, the World Bank has already extended its assistance for a Nepal-India cross-border transmission line project in a bid facilitate the power trading between the two countries. The government has further requested the Indian government for additional support to develop the second cross-border transmission line.
"Ministry of Energy has already sent a request letter to the Indian government through Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), seeking support for the second cross-border transmission line," said Koirala.
Koirala also noted that the government was pushing for signing a power trade agreement (PTA) with India at the earliest. "I have talked with Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai in this regard. We might ink the PTA with India with the next six months," Koirala said.
In a bid to tackle the power crisis, the government has also sought Indian assistance of RS 300 million. "I have written a letter to the Indian government seeking financial assistance as the medium-term support for stepping up the power supply," he informed the business community.
He further said that the government was working on to import 70 to 80 MW electricity from Indian in the upcoming fiscal year 2012/13. "So that we could meet the power shortage in industrial sector of eastern part," Koirala said.
Industrialists have been requesting the government to address the power shortage. "We are under pressure to operate factories though the government is not supplying electricity to the industrial sector and slapping double price for diesel bought for industrial purpose," Suraj Vaidya, president of the FNCCI said during the interaction program.
"A decision to this connection was taken on Thursday. We will have a concrete plan regarding the registration of the new institution within a week," said Energy Secretary Hari Ram Koirala.
Once established, he disclosed the new institution will handle all transmission related activities, freeing Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) from the transmission function. Koirala disclosed the government´s latest endeavor to expedite power sector reform when he interacted with the businessmen on existing power woes at Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI).
The private sector has been pushing the government to establish separate agencies to handle production, transmission and distribution of electricity in the country. So far, the NEA has been carrying out all these functions“ "NEA has been inefficient and consumers shouldn´t be the victim," Kush Kumar Joshi, former president of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) said.
Apart from the private sector, development partners such as India, the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank that have been assisting Nepal on the power sector too have been pushing for the structural reforms in the power sector. Their assessment is such reforms were crucial if the government was to end the country´s power woe and efficiently utilize the transmission lines being laid within and across the border.
So far, the World Bank has already extended its assistance for a Nepal-India cross-border transmission line project in a bid facilitate the power trading between the two countries. The government has further requested the Indian government for additional support to develop the second cross-border transmission line.
"Ministry of Energy has already sent a request letter to the Indian government through Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), seeking support for the second cross-border transmission line," said Koirala.
Koirala also noted that the government was pushing for signing a power trade agreement (PTA) with India at the earliest. "I have talked with Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai in this regard. We might ink the PTA with India with the next six months," Koirala said.
In a bid to tackle the power crisis, the government has also sought Indian assistance of RS 300 million. "I have written a letter to the Indian government seeking financial assistance as the medium-term support for stepping up the power supply," he informed the business community.
He further said that the government was working on to import 70 to 80 MW electricity from Indian in the upcoming fiscal year 2012/13. "So that we could meet the power shortage in industrial sector of eastern part," Koirala said.
Industrialists have been requesting the government to address the power shortage. "We are under pressure to operate factories though the government is not supplying electricity to the industrial sector and slapping double price for diesel bought for industrial purpose," Suraj Vaidya, president of the FNCCI said during the interaction program.
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