Damauli: The overall physical progress of the 140 MW Tanahu Hydropower Project, currently under construction in Tanahu, has reached 78 percent. Project Chief Shyamji Bhandari said work on all three packages of the project, being constructed at Jhaputar in Rishing Rural Municipality-1, has gained momentum.
Under the project, Package 1 involves the construction of the dam and other headworks structures, Package 2 covers the main tunnel, powerhouse and associated equipment, while Package 3 involves the construction of the Damauli–Bharatpur 220 kV transmission line.
Under Package 1, Song da Kalika JV is responsible for constructing the dam and other headworks structures. Physical progress under this package has reached 63 percent. Excavation of the hill for construction of the main dam, access roads, temporary cofferdams required to divert the Seti River, and two diversion tunnels have already been completed.
Concrete placement for the project’s 140-meter-high dam began on March 21, 2025, with the first concrete being poured on that date. A total of 33,681 cubic meters of concrete was placed in September 2026, alone. According to the project, 507,442 cubic meters of concrete has been placed in the dam and its associated structures so far.
Under Package 2, Sino hydro Corporation, China, is carrying out the construction of the powerhouse and associated equipment. Most of the civil construction works under this package have already been completed. The main concreting works for the powerhouse, cable tunnel, surge tank and tailrace, among other structures, have been completed, and physical progress under the package has reached 79 percent, Project Chief Bhandari said.
Concrete lining work is currently underway in the main tunnel, which will carry water from the reservoir to the powerhouse. Of the total 1,418.75 meters of tunnel requiring concrete lining, 1,407.75 meters has been completed so far.
Similarly, under Package 3, KEC International Limited of India is constructing the Damauli–Bharatpur 220 kV transmission line. Of the 94 towers to be constructed along the 33-kilometer transmission line, foundations for 83 towers have been completed, while 80 towers have already been erected.
Project Chief Bhandari said construction of the transmission line has gained further momentum after the project obtained permission from the Division Forest Offices in Chitwan and Tanahu to enter forest areas and cut trees. Physical progress under this package has reached 82 percent.
The project said the overall physical progress has reached 78 percent with construction work continuing across all three packages.
Jalasarokar