RASUWA, July 7: Upper Trishuli 'A' Hydropower Project (60 MW) has said that the project will not be able to start commercial generation within the current fiscal year.

Fanindra Raj Joshi, project chief of Upper Trishuli 3 'A', said that second unit will start generation only from August. “The first unit has already started power generation. Power generated by the unit has been connected to the national grid," he added.

Earlier, the project had said that both the units will start power generation within mid-July.

The first unit has been generating 30 MW of hydropower from last Friday. "This is trial production. The project will start commercial production once both the units start generating power," he added.

The project had earlier targeted to start power generation from the first unit from April 30. Upon completion, the project will be producing 8 percent of total hydropower produced in the country.

The project, which has dam in Rasuwa and powerhouse in Nuwakot, is being implemented by Nepal Electricity Authority. NEA handed over contract to develop the project to China Gezhouba Group Corporation in Engineering Procurement and Constitution (EPC) model. NEA signed the contract with Chinese contractor on May 28, 2010.

NEA started the project in April, 2011, setting completion 2014 construction deadline. However, the project got delayed by nearly five years because of the dispute with the Chinese contractor over increasing the project's capacity. Because of this, the project's deadline was extended till 2016. However, project works couldn't gain momentum due to the 2015 earthquakes and subsequent Indian blockade. This forced NEA to extend deadline to April 30, 2019. The total estimated cost of the project is Rs 13.99 billion.

According to NEA officials, the 60-megawatt project will be instrumental in managing supply and demand in the Kathmandu Valley given its proximity to the capital city.

 
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