India Approves Additional 251 MW Power Exports from Nepal

Tags: International Relations

India’s Designated Authority for Cross-Border Trade has approved an additional 251 MW of power exports from 12 Nepali hydropower projects.

An Overview of the News

• This increases the total allowed power exports from Nepal to India from 690 MW (from 16 projects) to 941 MW (from 28 projects).

Growth in Power Exports

• Nepal, already a net exporter of electricity and revenue generator, sold NPR 16.93 billion worth of electricity in the last fiscal year.

• Power exports from Nepal to India, which began with 39 MW in October 2021, have surged more than 24 times in less than three years.

New Agreements and Market Access

• Nepal has gained access to the Real-Time Market in addition to the Day Ahead Market of the Indian Energy Exchange.

• Medium-term power sales agreements have been established with distribution companies in Haryana and Bihar.

• India has included hydropower imports from Nepal in the Hydropower Purchase Obligation (HPO) for Indian buyers, incentivizing purchases.

Future Prospects

• The Agreement for Long-Term Power between India and Nepal aims to sell up to 10,000 MW of Nepali power to India over the next decade, with around 1,000 MW already achieved this year.

• Nepal is on track to become the leading hydropower exporter in South Asia.

• A planned agreement for 40 MW power export to Bangladesh was postponed due to recent political developments.

About Nepal

• The kingdom of Nepal was established by the Shah dynasty.

• It is a landlocked country in South Asia.

• Capital - Kathmandu

• Currency - Nepalese Rupee

• President - Ram Chandra Paudel

• Vice President -Ram Sahaya Yadav

• Prime Minister - KP Sharma Oli

• Chief Justice - Bishowambhar Prasad Shrestha