Power Minister visits SJVN’s hydro project in Nepal

Union Power Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and Energy Minister of Nepal Deepak Khadka visited the under-construction 900 MW Arun-3 Hydro Electric Project in Nepal. The project is being implemented by SJVN's wholly owned subsidiary, SJVN Arun-3 Power Development Company (SAPDC).

RK Chaudhary, CMD, SJVN (additional charge), welcomed the Minister of Power at Kathmandu airport and accompanied the delegation to the project site. Naveen Shrivastava, Indian Ambassador to Nepal; Suresh Acharya, Secretary, Ministry of Energy, Government of Nepal; Akash Tripathi, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Power, Government of India; Sushil Gyawali, CEO, Investment Board of Nepal, and other senior officials from both the governments also visited the project site.

During the visit, the ministers inspected the powerhouse, including the ongoing turbine assembly works. Prashant Sharma, CEO of SAPDC, briefed the delegation on the progress of the powerhouse construction.

The ministers appreciated the pace and quality of the work and encouraged the project teams to maintain momentum to ensure timely completion. Subsequently, both ministers jointly inaugurated the start of electro-mechanical works of Unit 2.

The delegation also visited the dam site, where they reviewed construction activities and inspected the Head Race Tunnel (HRT) through Adit 1. The excavation of the 11.7 km long HRT was completed in June 2024. The benching and lining works of the tunnel are currently underway and are expected to be completed in the coming months.

The ministers expressed satisfaction with the ongoing HRT works and urged SAPDC employees to accelerate the dam construction efforts to ensure early completion.