Damaru Lal Bhandari

Kathmandu, July 8:

Efforts to bring in a new electricity regulatory authority is currently caught up in a bureaucratic

mess, with equal efforts being made by ‘vested interest’ gr-oups who feel the new body would leave them with very little or no authority in the decision making process. The fact that the introduction of the much-awaited body is likely to be delayed by another year becomes evident from the way the concerned sections are working on the same. The government was supposed to issue an ordinance with the commencement of the next fiscal year, thus clearing the deck for the authority. However, there has been a delay in finalising its draft. The ‘vested interest’ groups in the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) and the Ministry of Water Resources are delaying the entire proc-ess by forming several committees before the draft is finalised. The fear dogging them is that they will have no say in awarding licences, fixing tariff and promoting business once the new authority takes over.

“We were hoping the ordinance would be ready before we start working with a broader mandate. That includes unbundling the NEA, among others,” said Chairman of Electricity Tariff Fixation Commission (ETFC), Dr Govind Raj Bhatta. Along with the draft, one more document which is also caught up in a similar maze is a draft concerning amendments in the Electricity Act, 1995. The efforts to have the ordinance ready date back to August 2004 when the government had formed a team to do the needful. The ordinance was discussed in a public hearing conducted on April 13 in the capital. Sources said the draft has come under severe criticism for lacking in so many fronts due to which the government handed it over to a sub-committee that is currently incorporating the inputs from stakeholders. Chances are it may hand over the same to another committee which is expected to take another four months. While the government may make the people believe the ordinance may go into effect in January, chances are slim. Claims are in place any delay in the formation of the authority would be adding to the financial woes of the power sector with a low return rate of 2 per cent — four per cent less than what was promised to donors.