Kathmandu- Union Mewa Hydro Limited has managed the investment for the 23 MW Mewa Khola hydropower project to be built on the Mewa river in the east. It has been decided that Nabil Bank and Himalayan Bank Limited will invest in the project under the leadership of Laxmi Bank Limited.
An agreement was reached between the promoter company and the investor banks on Tuesday (July 4). The investment agreement was signed by the chairman of the company, Kiran Malla, and the representatives of the affiliated banks. The estimated cost of the project is 4.7 billion rupees, 3.52 billion rupees will be invested through banks and 1.18 billion rupees through shareholders.
Lead bank Laxmi Bank will invest 1.52 billion rupees, while Nabil and Himalayan Bank will invest 1 billion rupees each in the project, which will have 75 percent loan and 25 percent equity investment. According to the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), the company has informed that the project will generate 136.79 gigawatt hours (136.7 million 90 thousand units) of electricity annually and generate an annual income of Rs 81 crore.
The electricity produced by the project will be connected to the under construction 132/220 KV substation through a 132 KV single circuit transmission line up to a distance of about 5 km from the power plant. A dam will be constructed at Khestembem located in Mikwa Khola Rural Municipality-5 of Taplejung District, Kosi Province, and will be discharged to the power plant to be built in the vicinity of the same rural municipality through a 1536-meter penstock pipe.
The company has informed that 11.5 km of the 13 km of access roads to be built up to the project construction site have been completed so far, and housing has been constructed at the headworks and power house. According to the PPA with the Nepal Electricity Authority, the time to produce electricity is fixed on 29th December 2025.
According to the company, the design discharge of the project with 893 meters of gross heat is 3.15 cusecs. Among the directors of the company are Brindavanman Pradhanang, Bikesh Pradhanang and Abhigaya Malla, along with Chairman Malla.
