Kathmandu, Sept 30: The government has begun working on alternative arrangements to manage Kathmandu’s electricity supply this winter after the devastating Bhotekoshi flood damaged hydropower projects and knocked 430 MW of electricity out of the national grid.
Officials at the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation said contingency planning has been stepped up after the flood disrupted electricity transmission from the Trishuli corridor to Balaju and Chapali in Kathmandu.
Ministry spokesperson Mohan Kumar Shakya said the disruption has increased pressure on the transmission network supplying Balaju and Chapali. The government is therefore working on alternative supply arrangements, while the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has formed a task force to manage the situation.
The ministry held discussions with the Department of Roads and Kathmandu Metropolitan City on Tuesday on constructing additional underground electricity grids to strengthen supply during winter.
Shakya said the talks focused on improving the reliability of the existing underground network and developing additional underground grids under a fixed schedule to prepare for winter electricity demand.
Subodh Devkota, chief of the Department of Roads’ Kathmandu Division, pledged the department’s cooperation in carrying out the underground grid works.
Suresh Kumar Rai, head of Kathmandu Metropolitan City’s Public Works Department, also said the city would cooperate in managing underground electricity cables beneath footpaths.
Durga Nanda Badiyat, chief of the NEA’s Project Directorate, said the authority would further streamline underground cabling work across the Kathmandu Valley and coordinate closely with its Distribution and Consumer Services Directorate to meet winter demand.
During the meeting, Bagmati Distribution and Consumer Services Directorate chief Munindra Thakur presented the measures required to manage Kathmandu’s electricity load. He said the NEA task force had already begun preparations for winter demand management.
NEA board member Anshu Kiran Shahi said close coordination among all concerned agencies would be necessary to manage Kathmandu’s winter electricity demand.
He said the authority was maintaining regular coordination with the Energy Ministry to ensure that increased pressure on the power system during winter could be managed without major supply disruptions.
People’s News Monitoring Service
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