Navalparasi (Bardghat Susta West) 11 December 2023. The Kushma-New Butwal section has been inaugurated under the Kaligandaki Corridor 220 KV transmission line project.
Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Minister Shakti Bahadur Basnet on Monday inaugurated about 90 km transmission line from Kushma Municipality-2 Khurkot in Pavart to New Butwal substation located in Sunwal Municipality-13 Suryabasti in Nawalparasi (Bardghat Susta West) under the second section of the project. The construction of the section was completed and the transmission line was put into operation last October.
The Kaligandaki Corridor 220 kV double circuit transmission line has been constructed to integrate the electricity of the hydropower projects to be built in the Kaligandaki and its tributaries and integrate it into the national system.
Under Kaligandaki Corridor 220 KV double circuit transmission line project, about 130 km double circuit transmission line has been constructed starting from Annapurna rural municipality-3 Dana substation in Myagdi and passing through Parbat, Baglung, Syangja, Palpa, Rupandehi to the new Butwal substation in Nawalparasi (Bardghat Susta West). The transmission line can carry an electrical load of about 1,200 megawatts.
At the opening ceremony, Minister Basnet said that the corridor transmission line of Kaligand is important for connecting Nepal’s east-west electricity and for international electricity trade. Stating that within one and a half years, we are working so that we do not have to import electricity even during the dry season, Basnet said that we are moving forward with the mandate and direction of producing 28,000 megawatts of electricity by 2035. He mentioned that the problem of electrification in irrigation will be solved with the integrated and collective efforts of the federal, state and local governments.
Members of Parliament from Lumbini Province, Khadg Basnet and Vaijnath Jaizwal, requested to arrange adequate and quality electricity supply in Nawalparasi, Rupandehi and other districts, which have great potential for industrialization, and to implement the agreements made with the locals during the construction of the transmission line project.
The Managing Director of Nepal Electricity Authority, Kulman Ghising, said that the new Butwal substation is a big pulling hub of electricity for local consumption, east-west flow and export to India. Mentioning that work is being done to establish transmission lines across the country, Ghising said that 60-70 billion rupees will be required for this within the next 5-6 years.
Arnold Kushwa, Director of Asian Development Bank, Nepal Housing Mission, said that it is commendable that the project has been completed by overcoming the complex legal system of tree cutting and due to the epidemic of Covid-19. Mentioning that the transmission line will contribute to the expansion of Nepal’s green clean energy produced in the Himalayan region to the South Asian region and consumption in the industrial sector, he said that the good practices adopted in the construction of the Kaligandaki Corridor project can be imitated in other projects as well.
The Authority had constructed the Kaligand Corridor transmission line by dividing it into two sections. Under the first section, about 40 km transmission line was constructed from Dana to Kushma Municipality-2 Khurkot in Parbat. In the first section, 220 ÷ 132 KV substations in Khurkot and 220 ÷ 132 ÷ 33 KV substations in Dana have been completed and are operational. Power transformers of 100-100 MVA capacity are placed in both substations.
236 towers have been constructed in Kushma-New Butwal section. Towers have been constructed for 220 KV four circuit (multi circuit) line from Sunwal municipality-13 Badera to New Butwal substation.
A new Butwal 220 kV substation has been constructed for domestic consumption of electricity produced within the country and for the promotion of bilateral and regional electricity trade, internal transmission and distribution and expansion and strengthening of international transmission systems.
After the Kaligand corridor transmission line is put into operation, the reliability of the integrated power system will increase and the voltage of Nawalparasi, Rupandehi and other areas will be improved.
The power of hydropower projects under construction and to be built in Mustang, Myagdi and other districts will be integrated into the national system in this transmission line of Kaligand.
The project head Chandan Ghosh said that the construction of the Kaligand corridor transmission line has been affected due to the delay in the tree cutting permit process, obstruction by the locals, and the Covid-19 epidemic.
A contract was signed with the Indian company L&T in November 2074 for the construction of the Kushma-New Butwal section. The agreement was implemented from December 2074.
The Kaligandaki Corridor Transmission Line Project has been constructed with the investment of the Nepal Government and Authority and concessional loans received from the Power System Expansion Project under the South Asia Sub-Regional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) of the Asian Development Bank. The estimated cost of the project is about 11 billion rupees.
After the construction of the line from New Butwal substation to Bardghat is completed, the 220 kV transmission line infrastructure will be ready from Hetaunda to New Butwal. New Butwal-Bardghat 21 km transmission line is under construction. Now the construction of 220 kV transmission line from Hetaunda to Bardghat via Bharatpur has been completed and has been put into operation. New Butwal-Gorakhpur 400 KV second cross boarder transmission line is also going to be constructed for electricity trade with India.
The excess electricity consumed within the country will be exported to India through the same transmission line. A 400 KV substation will be built in New Butwal with the grant received through the American aid project Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) and the Nepal section of the Butwal-Gorakhpur transmission line will be constructed with the investment of the government and authorities. New Butwal-Lamhi (Dang) 400 KV transmission line is under construction.
