Now we should focus on reliable supply and distribution, not just production: Energy Minister Shrestha
Kathmandu.Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, Biraj Bhakta Shrestha, has said that the government’s priority now was not only on the production but also on the strengthening of reliable supply, transmission and distribution system as Nepal has already achieved a remarkable achievement in power generation.
In his address to an interaction program on ‘Challenges of Electricity Infrastructure Construction and Way Forward’ organized by the Association of Economic Journalists-Nepal (NAFIJ) on Thursday, Minister Khatiwada said that there was a shortage of electricity in the country in the past and focused on increasing electricity generation.
He said, “In the past, when there was a high need for electricity, we were more focused on production.
Now we are in a position to supply in proportion to our demand. Therefore, the time has come to focus on sustainable supply and distribution along with production. Stating that the demand for electricity is increasing every year, he said the existing infrastructure infrastructure has not been able to meet the demand.
He said, “The demand for electricity is increasing every year due to the change in the lifestyle of the citizens, the need and the growth of commercial establishments.
Development and upgradation of infrastructure along with production is the need of the hour to maintain a balance between demand and supply. “Despite the availability of sufficient electricity due to dilapidated and sub-capacity transmission and distribution infrastructure, there has been problem in power supply in recent days,” he said.
“In the last few days, we have seen and experienced power cuts due to dilapidated and substandard power infrastructure despite having sufficient electricity,” he said.
Therefore, the present government is focused on the development and upgradation of the electronic infrastructure. Minister Shrestha said that the government has planned to spend around Rs 80 billion in the development of electricity infrastructure through the budget of fiscal year 2083÷84. He also said that Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) is preparing to invest heavily in infrastructure development from its internal resources.
Stating that the government has been pursuing generation, transmission, distribution, consumption and energy trade in a single strategic framework, he said the government has targeted to complete 12 transmission lines of strategic importance within the next fiscal year.”By the end of this fiscal year, the length of transmission lines of 66 kV and above will reach 7,04
8 circuit kilometers,” he said. The target is to expand an additional 800 circuit kilometers next year. “
will not only generate electricity but also contribute to local economic, social and educational development, so he urged the media persons to give priority to this aspect in the news.
Minister Shrestha said that the government has already implemented Energy Consumption Enhancement and Export Strategy-2083 and the per capita per capita electricity consumption will increase to 1,500 KWh by next 10 years from around 460 KWh. He further said that the government has forwarded the policy of increasing the domestic consumption of electricity and exporting electricity through inter-country transmission lines to save electricity during the rainy season. Stating that the Nepal-
India Energy Secretary-level meeting was an important achievement in achieving the long-term goal of exporting 10,000 megawatts power to India, Minister Khatiwada expressed his confidence that the decisions made on the expansion of cross-border transmission infrastructure and power trade would have positive impact in Nepal’s energy market.
Stating that the government has adopted the policy of liberalization of power trade for the first time, he said that legal provisions would be made allowing the private sector to trade electricity in the national and international market.
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