Managing Director of Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) Kulman Ghising has said that the problem in electricity supply will be resolved by Wednesday midnight.
Talking with Setopati on Wednesday Ghising conceded that there was low supply to a few industrial areas in the morning after import from Bihar was suddenly stopped Tuesday night.
The NEA has been currently procuring around 350-400 MW of electricity during the peak hours from India.
Price of electricity has risen by almost five times in India due to lack of coal and the global rise in price of petroleum products following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Nepal has signed a one-year deal to import 150 MW from NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam Limited and 75 MW from PTC India. Nepal did not get to buy electricity at the fixed rate following the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24 even though the deal will expire only in June.
Nepal has since been buying electricity from the open market where rate is determined every 15 minutes.
Nepal has also been buying over 200 MW from Bihar during the peak hours. “There was problem after the 200 MW coming from Bihar was also suddenly stopped Tuesday evening. Electricity has started to come from Bihar from Wednesday morning,” Ghising stated.
Nepal has been procuring electricity from Bihar at a slightly higher rate than that from NTPC. The NEA has been trying to procure electricity at up to IRs 8 per unit from the open market on the basis of that deal with Bihar.
But electricity was not traded at the rate quoted by Nepal on Tuesday as the average rate remained around IRs 11.75 per unit. “We will bid even by raising the rate today. We will run Kulekhani and Tamakoshi projects at full capacity in the evening peak hours,” Ghising assured.
The current peak demand in the evening is over 1600 MW. Kulekhani, Tamakoshi and Marsyangdi projects are operated at full capacity in the evening. “We have to import electricity from India to not use these projects during the day. The rate during the day is also not as high as that in the peak hours. We will bring electricity even by paying a high price from today,” he added.
