Investment Board setting up hydropower fund; World Bank, ADB, major donors positive

ShareSansar, December 11:

The Investment Board has decided to set up an investment fund for the development of hydropower projects.

The World Bank, Asian Development Bank, JICA and DFID have agreed to support the proposed hydropower fund during a meeting held yesterday, according to joint secretary of the Board, Mukunda Prasad Poudel.

However, the size of the fund will depend on the amount pledged by the donors, he added.

The Investment Board is creating the fund as the budget allocated by the government for the investment in the hydropower sector is not sufficient, according to the sources at the Board.

The Board, which has been mandated by the government to carry forward 14 projects including five major ones, plans to complete the Detailed Project Reports of all the projects above 500 Megawatt and at least take them to a construction phase, utilizing the fund.

The fund will also help the Board to build other major hydropower projects, too.
Out of the five major projects in the pipeline, Project Development Agreement (PDA) of the four projects of 3,050 MW is in the final stage.

For further study of the PDAs, the Board officials are currently in London.
The major projects include 900 MW Arun III, 900 MW Upper Karnali, 600MW Himtaal and 650 MW Tamakoshi III.