Kathmandu. Energy, Water Resources, and Irrigation Minister Deepak Khadka said that a master plan for the expansion of the transmission line should be created in view of the capacity of hydropower generation. In the discussion on ‘Nepal’s Transmission Line Master Plan’ organized by the Rastriya Prasaran Grid Co Ltd (RPGCL) today at the Ministry, he said that the broadcasting master plan should be created looking at the production capacity in the future.
“How many megawatts of electricity can be produced from a single river, and the master plan of the transmission line should be prepared after evaluating it. The master plan should not be made after the production, but the master plan should be made before the production,” said Energy Minister Khadka.
He mentioned that since the government has set a target of generating 28,500 megawatts of electricity in the next 10 years, emphasis should be placed on building the necessary infrastructure in transmission lines to achieve this target. He said that since energy is the main source of income for the country, a special plan should be made for its development.
Energy Minister Khadka said that there is no place to get entangled by showing confusion in the work schedule, so all confusion should be removed and we should move forward. He also requested to raise investment for the expansion of the transmission line as he is going to involve the private sector.
Unal said that the forest and land acquisition problems encountered during the construction of the transmission line should be solved and moved forward. He said that the fee to be paid for land acquisition should be the same standard for government and private sector. He expressed his belief that the Ministry of Finance will also support the development of the energy sector. He said that although the broadcast master plan is good, some things need to be refined.
Secretary of the Ministry of Energy, Gopal Prasad Sigdel, said that the private sector should be made aware of the benefits of transmission lines and start building an investment environment. He said that the development of the energy sector cannot be done by the government alone, so the support and cooperation of the private sector is necessary.
Praval Adhikari, an energy expert of the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, said that the development of the energy sector is necessary to change the economic structure of the country. He mentioned that the broadcast master plan that was recently created can be modified as per the need and can be moved forward. The energy expert officer opined that since the Nepal Electricity Authority has also worked with the grid company in the field of transmission lines, they should cooperate with each other and move forward.
Kulman Ghising, Managing Director of Nepal Electricity Authority, said that we should proceed with the construction of transmission lines based on the needs of the country. He mentioned that there is a need for huge investment in the Nepal’s energy sector.
Former Energy Secretaries Anup Upadhyay, Devendra Karki, Dinesh Ghimire, Senior Vice President Mohan Kumar Dangi and Vice President Ananda Chaudhary of Independent Power Producers Association (IPPAN) and others said that the government should give priority to the expansion of transmission lines in order to overcome the situation of transmission lines not being built even when electricity is about to be produced.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of National Broadcasting Grid Company Limited, Netra Prasad Gyawali informed that the master plan includes long-term planning, developing a balanced and effective transmission system, eliminating duplication and inadequacy in the construction of transmission lines.
Similarly, identifying common transmission corridors and making legal arrangements for their implementation, ensuring timely transmission services by providing connection hubs to independent power producers, judicious management of land and forest areas, preventing wastage of produced electricity or underutilization of transmission systems, through government agencies or companies , investment through private and public private partnership is also included in the master plan.
