KATHMANDU, JUNE 19
The construction of the new Bharatpur 220 /132 KV substation currently underway at Aaptari of Bharatpur Metropolitan City-11 of Chitwan district is about 80 per cent complete.
Work is underway to complete the construction of the substation within two months and bring it into operation.
Work on the main civil structure of the substation under construction under the Marsyangdi Corridor 220 KV transmission line project is in the final stage. Most of the equipment of the substation based on gas insulated substation (GIS) technology has been brought to the construction site. The substation will have two power transformers of 160 /160 MVA capacity.
Civil structures have been constructed to house the power transformers that are yet to be connected.
Visiting the construction site today, Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) Executive Director Kulman Ghising held discussions with the project management and the contractor company about the problems in the construction progress and directed to bring the substation into operation within two months.
A contract agreement was signed with Indian company L&T Ltd about two years ago for the construction of substations at Bharatpur and Udaipur in Lamjung under the project. The construction of the substation was affected due to the COVID-19. The under-construction 140 MW Tanahun Hydropower Project in Tanahun will also be connected to the new Bharatpur substation.
The Marsyangdi Corridor 220 KV transmission line project has been started for the supply of electricity generated from Marsyangdi and its tributaries to the national transmission system.
About 1,600 MW of electricity will be able to flow from the transmission line.
The length of the double circuit transmission line from Bharatpur of Chitwan to Dharapani of Manang is about 113 kilometres.
The project has been divided into three packages.
Under the first package, about 67 kilometres of transmission line is being constructed from Udaipur to New Bharatpur substation.
New Bharatpur and Udaipur substations are under construction under the second package. Under the third package, a 46 km transmission line and two substations are being constructed from Khudi to Dharapani. Under this package, substations at Khudi and Dharapani are also under construction.
The estimated cost of the project under construction is around Rs 16 billion with the investment of government of Nepal and concessional loan from European Investment Bank (EIB).
A version of this article appears in the print on June 20, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.
