State-owned SJVN Ltd on Sunday said it has signed a pact with the Investment Board of Nepal (IBN) to develop the 679-megawatt (MW) Lower Arun Hydro Electric Project in the country.
A memorandum of understanding (MoU) has been signed between SJVNL and the Investment Board of Nepal (IBN) for the development of the 679-MW Lower Arun HEP in Kathmandu, Nepal, a company statement said.
The MoU was signed by SJVNL Chairman and Managing Director Nand Lal Sharma and IBN Chief Executive Officer Sushil Bhatta.
The pact was signed in the presence of Nepal Deputy Prime Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel and Ambassador of India to Nepal Vinay Mohan Kwatra.
On this occasion, SJVN Arun-3 Power Development Company (SAPDC) CEO Arun Dhiman and SAPDC Chief Financial Officer Jitender Yadav were also present along with other senior officials from Government of Nepal and SJVNL.
Nand Lal Sharma said SJVNL has bagged 679-MW Lower Arun HEP through international competitive bidding (ICB), which involved big players.
The Lower Arun Hydro Electric Project is located in Sankhuwasabha and Bhojpur districts of Nepal.
The project will not have any reservoir or dam and will be a tail race development of 900 MW Arun-3 HEP.
The project will have four Francis turbines. On completion, the project will generate 2,970 million units of electricity per annum.
The project is scheduled to be completed in four years after commencement of construction activities.
The project has been allocated to SJVN for 25 years on a build-own-operate-transfer (BOOT) basis.
Sharma expressed gratitude to the Government of Nepal for keeping their faith in the abilities and capabilities of SJVN by selecting it as developer for Lower Arun HEP.
He also thanked Union Ministry of Power for supporting SJVN in its endeavours in India and abroad.
He further informed that SJVN started its journey in Nepal in 2008 by signing of the pact for implementation of 900 MW Arun-3 Project.
The project construction activities commenced with laying of the foundation stone jointly by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Nepalese counterpart K.P. Sharma Oli in 2018, with the active help and support of IBN and Government of Nepal.
Sharma further told that 900 MW Arun 3 Hydro Electric Project has achieved significant progress in the past three years despite the Covid-19 pandemic, as construction activities of the project are on full swing.
To mitigate any delays due to the pandemic, SJVN has already implemented an acceleration plan and is committed to commission this project ahead of schedule.
He also emphasised that such progress could not have been achieved without the continuous support of IBN and the Government of Nepal.
The requisite approvals were granted in a shortest possible time despite the challenges faced due to pandemic.
Nand Lal Sharma stressed that the hydro power has to be developed with the Integrated River Basin Development approach for economic viability and to give boost to infrastructural development.
This approach will result in optimisation of resources and faster project completion at lower cost.
He also requested the Government of Nepal for providing further opportunity to SJVN in partnering with the government for harnessing hydro power in Nepal.
SJVN's current installed capacity stands at 2,016.51 MW and aims to be a 5,000-MW company by 2023, a 12,000-MW firm by 2030 and a 25,000-MW entity by 2040.
SJVN has a presence in various sectors of energy generation including hydro, wind, solar and thermal. It also has a presence in energy transmission.
