Four hydropower projects halt production

KATHMANDU: SEPT. 7 – Four hydroelectricity projects operating in Myagdi, Mustang and Parbat have halted power production after a transmission tower collapsed.

The transmission tower at Chuwa of Kushma Municipality-8, Parbat district has fallen down, leading to disruption in the supply of a total of 70.6 megawatts of electricity from two power plants from Myagdi and one each from Parbat and Mustang.

The Number 4 tower of the 132 KV transmission line connecting the powerhouse of the Modikhola-1 Hydroelectricity Project with the Modi sub-station had collapsed due to the flood and landslide that occurred last Friday.

Upendra Gautam, Managing Director of United Modi, the promoter of the 10-megawatt-capacity Modi-1 Hydroelectricity Project, said the rest of the hydropower projects connected to the national transmission grid via the Modi sub-station have been affected due to this.

It is said soil and debris have been deposited in the 500 metres long canal of the Modi-1 project. Its dam has also been damaged due to the flooding. Along with Modi-1, the 42 megawatts capacity Mistrikhola hydroelectricity project at Narchyang, Annapurna Rural Municipality-4 and the five megawatts capacity Ghalemdikhola project in Myagdi district as well as the 13.6 megawatts capacity Thapakhola Hydropower Project at Tukuche in Mustang have stopped production.

Representative of Mistrikhola Hydroelectricity Project, Chudamani Niraula said the four hydropower projects were incurring losses of millions of rupees due to the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA)’s delay in construction of a diversion tower and repairing the collapsed transmission tower. Mountain Energy Nepal is the promoter of the Mistrikhola project.