Kathmandu — The cost of the Upper Trishuli-1 Hydropower Project is expected to increase. The projected cost of the 216-megawatt project is estimated to rise by approximately NPR 30 billion.
The project’s cost is estimated to increase from NPR 36.48 billion 37 million 92 thousand to NPR 66.12 billion 25 million. Back in 2013, the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report had been approved with a cost estimate of NPR 36.48 billion.
However, the project has not been able to move forward. After 12 years, a supplementary Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report has been made public. The supplementary EIA estimates that the project’s cost has increased abnormally, reaching more than NPR 66 billion.
The proponent of the Upper Trishuli-1 Hydropower Project is Nepal Water and Energy Development Company Pvt. Ltd.
It has been clarified that a supplementary Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) was conducted due to changes made to the project’s design, cancellation of the access road up to the dam site, construction of three additional Bailey bridges, minor modifications to project structures, and the designation of project activities within the buffer zone of Langtang National Park.
The project is based on a run-of-the-river scheme. The proposed project has a design discharge of 76 cubic meters per second and aims to generate a total of 216 megawatts of electricity. The headworks of the project are located on the lower bank, 275 meters downstream from the confluence of the Trishuli River and the Bhotekoshi River, while the powerhouse is situated on the upper bank, 500 meters upstream from the confluence of the Mailung Khola and the Trishuli River.
The hydropower project has a gross head of 342.6 meters. The energy generated by the project will be transmitted from the project’s switchyard to the Chilime–Trishuli-3B Hub Station through a 220 kV single-circuit transmission line.
The project’s main structures include a diversion tunnel, intake, desander, headrace tunnel, surge shaft, penstock, powerhouse, tailrace, and switchyard. All major project structures are located on the right bank of the Trishuli River, while temporary structures at the camp and headworks fall within the buffer zone of Langtang National Park.
To reach the proposed project’s headworks area, there is a 23-kilometer road from Betrawati along the Galchhi–Betrawati–Mailung–Syafrubesi–Kerung National Highway, while access to the powerhouse area involves a 13-kilometer unpaved road from Betrawati.
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