The reconstruction of Mandu Hydropower, which was severely damaged by floods in Bagmati due to incessant rains on October 27 and 28, is nearing completion. According to project officials, 77 percent of the restoration work has been completed, and the plant is expected to resume electricity production by the last week of March.
More than 100 workers, including technicians and laborers, have been working tirelessly for the past two months. The retrofitting of the damaged powerhouse has been successfully completed, and equipment installation inside the facility is progressing rapidly.
Manoj Singh, a senior technician at Mandu Hydropower, stated that the repair of the penstock pipe and the removal of sand and mud from the tunnel are in their final stages. “The reconstruction of the damaged dam in Bagmati has been completed,” he said. “We are working from morning till late night to ensure timely restoration.”
The landslide had caused extensive damage to key infrastructure, including the headworks, powerhouse, penstock pipe, and electricity tower. Mandu Hydropower, which generates electricity from its production facility in Bhimfedi Rural Municipality-8, Bagmati Dobhan, Makwanpur, is now on track to resume operations soon.
Chief Operating Officer Sunder Shrestha said that the Bagmati flood has caused damage of more than one billion to Hydropower, which has been producing 22 megawatts of electricity since 2018. “Flood caused unimaginable damage to hydropower, its repair has reached the final stage,” he said. The road from Sisneri market to the project site was damaged by the flood. The
project has opened the way to reach the project site by repairing the road. The flood damaged 100 meters of pipe out of 600 meters of penstock. “The work of the penstock pipe has also been completed,” said Technician Singh. The work of removing sand and mud has also been completed.’ Electricity was produced from Bagmati water in a joint venture between the private sector Mandu Hydropower Company and a Chinese company.
The 55 meter long dam built in Bagmati was also damaged by the flood. It has also been renovated. 12.4 cusecs of water per second flows through the tunnel through the dam. The powerhouse (electric house) is 2440 meters away from the dam built in Bagmati. Nepali technicians and Nepali laborers were used to dig the hydropower tunnel, construct the dam, and install the penstock pipe. According to the project, repair work is also being done by Nepali technicians and workers.
Mandu Hydropower had an agreement with the Nepal Electricity Authority to sell at 4 rupees 40 paisa per unit in rainy season and 8 rupees 40 paisa in winter.
