Kathmandu, 10 December (H.S.): Nepal’s Minister for Energy, Water Resources, and Irrigation, Kulman Ghising, held a high-level meeting with Indian Ministry of External Affairs Additional Secretary Manu Mahawar on Tuesday at Singha Durbar, focusing on strengthening bilateral cooperation in the fields of energy, water resources, and irrigation.

The discussions covered a wide range of issues, including electricity trade between the two countries, expansion of cross-border transmission lines, progress in hydroelectric projects with Indian public-sector investment, and emerging opportunities for joint energy development.

The two sides also deliberated on organizing meetings of bilateral energy and water resource mechanisms, delivering water to Nepal during dry seasons through the Mahakali Irrigation Project’s third-phase canal, resolving forest land clearance issues related to the 900 MW Arun III and 669 MW Lower Arun hydropower projects under construction by Indian public-sector companies, approving Nepal’s additional electricity exports to India, and managing power imports during the winter season.

Minister Ghising noted that approval for electricity imports during winter months has been granted only until the end of December. He urged India to extend the authorization for continuous 24-hour power imports in the coming months. He also proposed eliminating the annual re-approval requirement for exporting electricity via India’s Day-Ahead and Real-Time Markets, suggesting a single blanket approval system.

Additionally, Ghising requested India’s consent to allow the transfer of 20 MW of surplus power to Bangladesh using the existing Indian transmission network. He said coordination between Nepal’s Energy Ministry and Investment Board was underway to address issues related to forest land utilization for the Arun III and Lower Arun projects.

Ghising further sought additional financial assistance through India’s Exim Bank Line of Credit for transmission infrastructure expansion.Indian Additional Secretary Manu Mahawar, who heads the Nepal Desk at the Ministry of External Affairs, expressed confidence that pending challenges concerning Indian-assisted hydropower projects in Nepal would be resolved through continued cooperation. He added that electricity trade and transmission infrastructure between India and Nepal had entered a new phase of growth, marking significant progress in bilateral energy relations.

Senior officials from Nepal’s Energy Ministry, including Secretaries Sarita Dawadi and Chiranjeevi Chatout, Joint Secretary Sandeep Kumar Dev, representatives from India’s South Asia Desk, and officials from the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu were also present during the meeting.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar