KATHMANDU, March 18: Nepal has opened up the possibility to export electricity to other states of India besides Bihar.
The power exchange committee meeting between Nepal and India has decided to allow Nepal to export electricity to other states through the transmission grid of Bihar state.
The modality for the expansion of electricity export has yet to be decided, but Nepal will have to finalize it within a month, as per the decision made during the 14th meeting held in New Delhi on Friday.
Kulman Ghising, Executive Director of Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), and Ashok Kumar Rajput, Member of Power System of Central Electricity Authority of India, co-chaired the meeting. Nepal will export electricity from the point where the transmission line is connected to Bihar, connecting it to the central grid of India.
Nepal exports electricity worth Rs 8.32 billion to India
The Kataiya (Bihar)-Kushwa (Nepal) and Raxaul-Parwanipur 132 KV transmission lines are connected with Bihar. In the tenth meeting of the Nepal-India Energy Secretary-level joint directorate committee, it was decided to complete the construction of the second circuit of Kataiya-Kushwa and Raxaul-Parwanipur 132 KV transmission lines by March 2023 and April/May 2023, respectively.
The meeting of the Electricity Exchange Committee has fixed the rate of 7.21 Indian Rupees (Nepali Rs 11.54) per unit of electricity to be imported and exported under the Electricity Exchange Agreement. The rate will be applicable even when exporting to India. The new fixed rate is not on a take-or-pay basis, and it is cheaper than the current Indian market rate.
NEA has been importing electricity from India's Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and Uttarakhand when needed. The authority imports the most electricity from Bihar when required compared to the other two states. The new rate has been set so that Nepal can get electricity at the time it wants, and the rate will be cheaper than the current market rate.
NEA has earned 8.44 billion rupees by selling excess monsoon electricity consumed within the country in the current financial year in the Indian market.
