Despite Nepal’s abundant hydropower resources and high potential for economically viable hydropower development, the country is currently unable to fully utilize its hydropower resources because it has not developed enough to meet its electricity demand. Factors preventing power development from progressing as targeted include the cost of power transmission and distribution facilities due to steep mountainous terrain, limited government credit and investment capacity and inadequate private capital utilization systems, unplanned granting of construction licenses to independent power producers, and poor coordination among the government, regulatory agencies, and public power companies involved in power development. Another issue is the lack of a comprehensive long-term power development plan that should be shared by all relevant organizations, including independent power producers. Therefore, the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation (MOEWRI) needs to take the lead in formulating an electricity development plan, clarify the approval process for the development plan, and establish a coordination function among related agencies. This cooperation will strengthen MOEWRI’s planning capacity and promote coordination among related agencies, and will contribute to the development and improvement of planned hydropower generation and power systems by developing capacity for integrated power system development planning and its methodology.
© Source JICA