LAMJUNG: Constructed six years ago,the 70 MW Mid-marsyangdi hydro project is in dire straits, thanks to accumulation of sand at the dam site.
Built with German government’s 80 per cent grant and Nepal government’s and Nepal Electricity Authority’s 20 per cent investment, dam and civil structure at the project have seen serious setbacks due to sand accumulation.
Project Chief Rajesh Kumar Pandey said the sand accumulated at the project has hit the hydro power’s turbine and other parts hard. 5,000 part per million (ppm) sand is normal at the dam site, but the site witnessed 21,000 and 10,000 ppm sand accumulation last year and this year respectively.
Technicians say that the site has witnessed excessive quantity of sand despite cleaning every year.
According to project Chief Pandey, sand is sapping the roller bucket, turbine runner, and other parts of the hydro project at the site.
Similarly, the project has recorded other problems such as land erosion, closure of operating system, destruction of physical structures, etc. Rods have come off as well as plastic, whereas the iron has rusted.
After sand demolished
important parts of the project, Nepal Electricity Authority is spending up to Rs 5 million every year to repair the project.
Pandey said that this project earned Rs 14 billion in the last six years. He further added that it would take six more years to collect the capital investment.
The hydro-project had taken double the scheduled time to complete due to political instability and general strike among others. The cost of the project had exceeded Rs 27.87 billion from Rs 13.6 billion due to time extension.
Source : The Himalayan Times
