Kathmandu, October 5

The construction of the 220 KV Chilime-Trishuli Transmssion Line project has been launched recently. This joint undertaking of the European Union, German Development Cooperation/KfW, European Investment Bank and the Nepal government will construct the 27-km-long Chilime-Trishuli transmission line at a cost of about 65 million euros, according to the press statement issued by the Delegation of the European Union to Nepal.

During the launch programme, Minister for Energy Janardan Sharma underlined that the construction of this state-of-the-art 220 kV double circuit line is an excellent example of a strong partnership and collective efforts of Nepal government, the German Development Cooperation/KFW, the EU and the European Investment Bank.

“In a holistic approach, the project focuses both on power generation and transmission from the Trishuli river basin,” the statement has quoted Minister Sharma as saying. As per the statement, Minister Sharma stressed the importance of completing the project in a timely manner for the benefit of Nepali people.

Similarly, speaking in the programme, Ambassador of the EU Delegation to Nepal Rensje Teerink said that accelerated development in Nepal needs to keep clean energy as a top priority. “With a real sense of urgency, collective efforts should transform enormous potential into tangible reality. In this context, the construction of the Chilime-Trishuli transmission line is an important pilot contribution to the national grid. It will bring light and energy to homes, households and school children across the country,” the statement has quoted the ambassador as saying. “The South Asian region as a whole would benefit from the supply of clean energy if regional cooperation projects could be put in place to harness this potential.”

Also speaking in the function, Deputy Chief of Mission and Head of Cooperation at the German Embassy, Jacqueline Groth highlighted Germany’s continued commitment to the Nepali energy sector. Apart from its contribution to the transmission line project, German Development Cooperation will also support the upgrading of the Load Dispatch Centre in Kathmandu.

The upgrading will result in increase of supply of electricity fed into the national grid. It will reduce transmission losses and increase the reliability of the grid. As a result, the framework conditions for economic activities in Nepal will be improved especially for the industrial sector and small and medium enterprises, as per the statement.

With an investment of 65 million euros, the 220 KV Chilime-Trishuli Transmission Line project will include the construction of the 220/132 kV Trishuli 3 B Hub Substation, the construction of the 220/132 kV-Chilime Substation and the construction of the Chilime-Trishuli 220 kV double circuit Transmission Line (27 Km).

The transmission line project will be complemented by the construction of the Samundratar-Trishuli 3B Hub Transmission Line and Substation, at a cost of 270 million euros to which the EIB will contribute 95 million euros.