KATHMANDU, Oct 26: The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has resumed the electricity supply to two of the 34 industries whose electricity lines it had cut off on Thursday evening after they failed to pay arrears for the use of dedicated feeder and trunk line services. The NEA officials said the power supply to the two industries was resumed on Friday afternoon after they agreed to enter an agreement over payment of the dues on an installment basis.
“Two of the 34 industries whose power supply was cut off on Thursday have started to get electricity from the national electricity grid after they agreed to pay their arrears on an installment basis,” spokesperson for the NEA Chandan Kumar Ghosh told Republica. He however did not reveal the names of the two industries.
A meeting of the Board of Directors (BoD) of the authority held on Thursday morning remained inconclusive on whether or not to cut the line. Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Deepak Khadka had left the meeting instructing Managing Director of the NEA Kulman Ghising to take a decision only after discussing with the industrialists.
NEA reconnects electricity supply to industries after 22 days
Ghising instead asked for a decision from the cabinet on this matter related to the overdue electricity tariff. Minister Khadka, however, did raise the issue of the industries at the cabinet meeting on Thursday.
Subsequently, Ghising by Thursday evening only accepted half of Minister Khadka’s instruction at the BoD meeting of the NEA by simply informing the industrialists that their lines will be cut if they fail to pay the arrears. Following this action, Ghising directed the NEA officials to cut off power supply to the 34 industries.
Earlier on July 21, as many as 49 industries were directed by the NEA to clear their arrears within three months. On October 10, the NEA published a notice urging the industries to pay their dues for dedicated feeder and trunk lines from mid-January 2016 to mid-April 2018 within two weeks. The NEA had given the deadline until October 24 to settle their dues.
As reported by Spokesperson Ghosh, Sonapur Cement, Arghakhanchi Cement, and Ghorahi Cement were among the industries that lost power supply. Likewise, power to other factories, including Bhairahawa Automatic Factory, Hulas Steel, Ashok Steel, Hama Iron and Steels, Jagdamba Steels, Himal Iron & Steel, and Shyam Plastic Industry, was also disconnected.
However, NEA didn’t cut the power supply of two government-owned cement companies, Udayapur Cement and Hetauda Cement, and seven other private industries as they had received an interim order from the Supreme Court to not disconnect them from the national power grid.
The government has been attempting to oust Managing Director of Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), Kulman Ghising, from his post for his move of delegating rights from the NEA to officials in his past two tenures. However, with the focus of the government shifted to the arrest of Rastriya Swatantra Party Chairman Rabi Lamichhane, the government had not moved forward with the removal of Ghising from his position.
Issuing a statement on Friday, the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry has demanded that the power supply to the industries facing blackout be restored immediately claiming that the blackout has affected production and adversely affected the environment for investment in the country.
