KATHMANDU, JANUARY 17

The manufacturing industries which were affected due to the COVID-19 pandemic will get exemption from electricity demand charges for the lockdown period. A meeting chaired by Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Poudel at the Ministry of Finance today has decided to implement electricity demand fee waiver from Monday.

Finance Minister Poudel expressed confidence that the implementation of the decision would benefit the industries and further help in reviving the economy that has been severely affected by the coronavirus pandemic and the subsequent lockdown imposed by the government to contain the spread of the virus.

The meeting has decided to provide such exemption to 58 types of industries that are mentioned in the Industrial Business Rules, 2020.

The budget of the fiscal year 2020-21 has also mentioned about waiving the electricity demand fee for the lockdown period of the manufacturing industries affected by the COVID-19. The meeting has also decided to give 50 per cent discount on the electricity consumption fee when the demand decreases.

In the meeting, Revenue Secretary Ram Sharan Pudasaini, Secretary of the Ministry of Industry Baikuntha Aryal, Secretary to the Ministry of Energy Dinesh Kumar Ghimire, Economic Adviser to the Finance Minister Prakash Kumar Shrestha, Executive Director of Nepal Electricity Authority Hitendra Dev Shakya and Director General of Industry Department Jiv Lal Bhusal were present.