India clears Nepal’s 654MW power imports, Bangladesh exports await approval

India has renewed approval for Nepal to import up to 654 megawatts of electricity, while Nepal’s plans to export power to Bangladesh remain stalled and India has yet to renew export permits for three hydropower projects whose approvals expired while they were supplying electricity to India.

The export permit for the 38.8MW Upper Chameliya Hydropower Project expired on June 30, while those for the 24.25MW Seti River and 10.7MW Upper Tadi Khola projects expired on July 31.

Nepal exports surplus electricity to India and Bangladesh during the monsoon but relies on imports from India during the dry winter months, when hydropower generation falls, The Kathmandu Post reported.

India’s Ministry of Power said on Monday that it had approved electricity imports by Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) for 18 hours a day, from midnight to 6pm, from September 13 through December 31.

The NEA has also sought India’s approval to export electricity from the 9.94MW Kabeli B-1 and 82MW Solu Khola projects to Bangladesh. Both projects have approval to sell power through India’s Day-Ahead Market and Real-Time Market, but India has yet to approve their use for exports to Bangladesh, said Dhirghayu Kumar Shrestha, acting managing director of the NEA.

“We have sent the name of another project for approval to export electricity to Bangladesh, but we have not received approval yet,” Shrestha said.

“We have also asked India to renew the permits for projects whose export approvals have expired, but we have not received them yet.”

Floods disrupt Nepal’s power exports

Recent floods in the Bhotekoshi River have caused a power shortfall of 350MW to 400MW, and it remains uncertain when the damaged plants will be restored. India has also yet to renew permits for the three projects that were already exporting electricity.

Nepal is currently exporting an average of about 600MW to India each day, according to the NEA.

The situation has been further complicated by floods in the Bhotekoshi River, which damaged the Trishuli and Chilime hydropower projects. Both had been approved to export electricity to India and Bangladesh, but Nepal’s exports to Bangladesh have been halted for nearly a month.

The 14.1MW Devighat Hydropower Project also had approval to export electricity to India but was damaged by the Bhotekoshi floods. The NEA has sought permission to sell power from the Lower Modi project in the bilateral market as a replacement.

Lower Modi already has approval to sell electricity through the Indian Energy Exchange, but India has yet to approve its sale in the bilateral market.

An NEA source said officials check with their Indian counterparts about the pending approvals every day but are repeatedly told that the process is “underway”.

Nepal depends on India for power trade

Nepal must renew export approvals for authorised hydropower projects every year, while India must also extend permission for electricity imports. The arrangement leaves Nepal dependent on Indian policy for both buying and selling power.

The restrictions come as floods have already shut down 431.1MW of generating capacity during the monsoon, when Nepal normally has surplus electricity to sell.

Another 134.85MW that Nepal is authorised to export to India and Bangladesh remains unsold because the required approvals have not been granted.

Nepal has so far secured approval to export about 1,200MW generated by 37 hydropower projects to India and Bangladesh.

The NEA trades electricity through the Indian Energy Exchange’s Day-Ahead Market, selling surplus monsoon power and buying electricity when domestic generation falls during the dry season.

Nepal can also trade through India’s Real-Time Market, allowing it to buy or sell electricity at short notice, typically with about an hour’s notice. The mechanism helps the authority respond to sudden changes in generation or demand.

Nepal also uses India’s transmission network to send electricity to Bangladesh.

Although India has allowed Nepal to continue importing power while it is still exporting electricity, approval for the dry season remains uncertain, said Rajan Dhakal, spokesperson for the NEA.

“We need electricity in the winter months. We will continue exporting until December, and we will need imports after that,” Dhakal said. “India has told us it will review the matter later. We are still exporting around 600MW a day.”

India has also not allowed Nepal to import electricity during the evening peak, when demand is highest in the dry season. Nepal is currently authorised to import electricity only until 6pm.