NIB seeks more teeth to implement 14 mega projects

The government is preparing to authorize the Nepal Investment Board (NIB) to independently handle 14 mega projects after the latter faced implementation hurdles due to lack of cooperation from different line ministries.
The NIB officials have long been seeking more teeth to ensure smooth functioning of project implementation.
"The Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers (OPMCM) is soon forwarding a proposal to the cabinet that envisages delegating more authority to NIB,” a source at the OMPCM told Republica. The source said lack of cooperation from line ministries prompted the government to take the fresh move.
“NIB has already asked the OPMCM to delegate more power to it for implementation of the projects,” the source said.
The NIB, which is chaired by the Prime Minister, is presently taking necessary decisions regarding the implementation of these mega projects.
The meeting of the board of directors of the NIB had decided to take over 14 mega projects including 5 hydropower projects such as Tamakoshi III (650 MW), Upper Karnali (900MW), Upper Marsyangdi (600MW), Arun III (900MW), West Seti (950 MW) in May.
NIB also has been overseeing Kathmandu-Terai Fast Track, a project to upgrade Tribhuvan International Airport, Nijgadh International Airport project and waste management project, among others.
Confirming the fresh developments, Krishna Hari Baskota, secretary at the OPMCM, said his office was seeking feedback from the concerned ministries on the issue. "We are holding discussion with concerned ministries before forwarding the proposal to the cabinet for approval," Baskota told Republica on Friday.
According to the source, NIB is facing difficulties even in getting the current status of the projects from concerned ministries. For example, NIB had asked Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoCTCA) to provide documents related to Nijgadh International Airport project around a couple of months ago. After the MoCTCA cold-shouldered its request, NIB had to approach Landmark Worldwide (LMW) - the firm that prepared detailed project report of the mega project - for the document.
The source also said the Ministry of Physical Planning, Works and Transport Management (MoPPWTM) is reluctant to let Kathmandu-Tarai Fast Track project to slip out of its hand. In yet another case, Ministry of Energy (MoE) has not given any document related to five mega hydropower projects to NIB.
The NIB officials claim the board reserves the authority to facilitate the implementation of all hydropower projects above 500 MW.
"The ministries have to comply with the decisions taken by the cabinet," the source said. "That is why NIB is seeking for stronger decision from the government to make it mandatory for all line ministries to extend cooperation to it."

Nepal-India power trade deal delayed

Signing of the Nepal-India Power Trade Agreement (PTA) has hit a snag with India seeking more time to study Nepal´s proposal.
Though Nepali officials proposed to discuss the contents of the proposed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on bi-lateral electricity trade at the seventh meeting of the Nepal-India Joint Committee on Water Resources (JCWR) being held in Kathmandu, participating Indian officials said they need time to study the proposal.
“Nepal-India power trade agreement is likely to be delayed as Indian officials have sought more time to study the proposal,” said a Nepali official who participated in the JCWR meeting that concluded on Friday.
Nepal had submitted a draft of MoU on PTA to India in 2009 before sitting for talks. The fifth meeting of JCWR held in Pokhara in November 2009 had decided to finalize the draft. The signing of PTA would have paved the way for laying cross-border transmission line and power trade between the two countries.
The Nepali side had also drawn the attention of Indian officials about implementation of the first phase of 400 kV Dhalkebar-Mujaffarpur cross-border transmission line. The transmission line is to be developed and operated by the private sector.
The bilateral meeting dwelled on a host of pending issues such as Pancheshwar Multipurpose Project, Tanakpur Barrage, Tanakpur-Mahendranagar Link Road, Koshi High Dam Project, Gandak Project and Naumure, among others.
“The Indian government needs some more time to review and respond to the terms of reference (ToR) of Pancheshwar Development Authority (PDA) as the Indian finance ministry has offered suggestions on clause 17 regarding exemption of taxes and duties on equipment and materials to be used in the projects,” reads the minute signed by officials of both the countries.
Energy Secretary Hari Ram Koirala from the Nepali side and secretary of the Indian ministry of water resources Dhruv Vijay Singh signed the minute.
Similarly, Indian officials have said it would take some more time for securing forest clearance approval for one kilometer section of the Tanakpur-Mahendranagar Link Road that passes through a forest in Uttrakhand, India. However, the meeting has decided to appoint RITES Ltd India for preparing the Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the remaining section of the road parts.
Meanwhile, Nepali side also demanded that the issue of compensation for 10,306 bighas of private land damaged by the Koshi project be resolved at the earliest.
Nepali side also picked up the issue of crop damages and other problems caused by western main canal of the Gandak Project. However, India refused to discuss the issue further stating that it had already been dropped during the third meeting of Joint Committee on Koshi and Gandak Projects (JCKGP).