New Delhi: State-owned SJVN Limited in a regulatory filing on Thursday said that the company has signed a Project Development Agreement (PDA) for the 669 MW Lower Arun Hydro Electric Project in Nepal. The agreement marks a significant step forward for SJVN as it expands its presence in Nepal's hydroelectric sector.
The Lower Arun Hydro Electric Project, located in the Sankhuwasabha and Bhojpur districts of Nepal, will be constructed over a period of five years, with an estimated cost of Rs 5,792 crores. The project will operate on a Build-Own-Operate-Transfer (BOOT) basis and is expected to generate 2,901 million units of energy annually. Notably, the project's levelised tariff has been set at Rs 4.99 per unit. In addition to the hydroelectric project itself, SJVN is also undertaking the development of a 217 km-long associated Transmission Network to facilitate power evacuation and export to India.
SJVN secured the 669 MW Lower Arun Hydro Electric Project through an International Competitive Bidding process in February 2021. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the project was subsequently signed in July 2021. Further, the filing noted that the tail race development of the 900 MW Arun-3 Hydro Electric Project will operate in tandem with the Lower Arun project, without the need for a reservoir or dam.
Currently, SJVN is actively engaged in the execution of three hydro projects with a total capacity of 2,059 MW in Nepal. The 900 MW Arun-3 Hydro Electric Project is in an advanced stage of construction, while the 490 MW Arun-4 Hydro Electric Project will be developed as a Joint Venture between SJVN and the Nepal Electricity Authority. Demonstrating its ambition in Nepal's hydroelectric sector, SJVN has set a target of developing 5,000 MW of projects in the country by 2030, the filing said.
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