Arun-III Hydro Power Project:
Indian Minister of Power and Housing Affairs, recently visited the Arun-III Hydel Project, which is being constructed with Indian assistance, during his official trip to Nepal.
- It is a 900 MW run-of-the-river hydropower project located on the Arun River in the Sankhuwasabha District of Eastern Nepal.
- It envisages about 70 m high concrete gravity dam and Head Race Tunnel (HRT) of 11.74 km with an underground Power House containing four generating units of 225 MW each on the Left Bank.
- It is being developed with Indian assistance at a cost of Rs. 144 billion.
- Once completed, it will be the biggest hydroelectric facility in Nepal.
- It is being developed on a build-own-operate-and-transfer (BOOT) basis by Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVN) Arun-III Power Development Company (SAPDC), a wholly owned subsidiary of India’s SJVN.
- SJVN is a joint venture between the Government of India and the Government of Himachal Pradesh.
- SAPDC will operate the facility for a period of 25 years, excluding the construction period of five years, before transferring ownership to the Nepal government.
- Nepal will receive 21.9% of the electricity generated at the power plant as free power during these initial 25 years of commercial operations.
- The project will provide surplus power to India, strengthening economic linkages with Nepal.
- The power from the project shall be exported from Dhalkebar in Nepal to Muzaffarpur in India.
