Nepal Telecom says indecisive NEA delaying optical fibre plan
KATHMANDU, JAN 21 -
Nepal Telecom (NT) said that its plan to expand the optical fibre network had been stalled by the indecision of the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA). It said that the NEA had earlier agreed to provide a 3,000-km route for stringing optical fibre cable on its transmission lines but had now made available only a 500-km route.
NT’s failure to sign a contract for collaboration for the promised route length had put its plan in difficulty. The NEA had assured NT to allow it to string 3,000 km of optical fibre cable before signing a Rs 6 billion loan agreement for the Upper Tamakoshi Hydropower Project in May last year, according to NT officials. “The 3,000 km route was planned to establish optical fibre connection for over four dozen hilly districts across the country using NEA’s various transmission line routes,” said a senior NT official. The official added that as NT had failed to call for tenders, they were currently working on extending fibre cable lines on only a 500-km long transmission route provided by the NEA. NT had been planning for a long time to use NEA’s transmission lines to expand its fibre cable network as it would be cheaper and easier than laying underground cables, especially in the hilly districts.
A source at NT said that the company had offered to pay the NEA Rs 100,000 per km for the use of its transmission lines for 30 years. The NEA has said that it would allocate the routes after its board reaches a decision. “NT is in discussion with the NEA,” said Jeevan Ratna Shakya, deputy managing director of NT’s Planning Division. He added that the company this year was working on five routes as part of its effort to expand the optical fibre network across the country.
As of now, NT has established fibre links in 25 districts. It is planning to connect the district headquarters of Surkhet, Kusma, Baglung, Gaighat, Dhankuta and Myanglung this year by extending fibre cables on the Butwal-Palpa-Pokhara, Kusma-Baglung, Lahan-Gaighat, Kohalpur-Chhinchu-Surkhet, Dharan-Dhankuta-Hiley-Basantpur-Myanglung routes.
According to NT, it has completed work on laying 240 km of optical fibre cable. It aims to lay another 400 km of fibre cable in the current fiscal in different parts of the country.
Apart from NT, the Nepal Telecommunications Authority has also been planning to link all the districts with optical fibre connections avoiding duplication in districts where fibre connection have already been installed. The plan has remained under consideration at the Ministry of Information and Communications for more than three months.
Source: Kantipur
