The Electricity Development Department has amended the Procedures for Grid Connected Alternative Electricity Development, 2078 to allow companies to bring a recommendation from the ward or municipality to get a survey license. Earlier, a recommendation had to be brought from the Irrigation Department or the State Government that the proposed solar power project should not fall within irrigable land.

The Irrigation Department said that there was a delay in issuing the recommendation letter due to a conflict between the arrangement of the grid procedure and the Irrigation Master Plan (updated 2024). However, on January 28, the Electricity Development Department revised the procedure and made it possible to apply for a survey permit by bringing a letter of recommendation from the ward or municipality.

The director general of the department, Navinraj Singh, said that the recommendation of the concerned ward or municipality will be brought to build a solar power project in the proposed area. Singh said that even though they were asked to bring recommendations from the union or the state, the concerned body sent the letter to the municipality itself, so the ward or municipality was formed by amending the procedures. "In the previous arrangement, there was an arrangement to bring it from the Union's department and the province, the department and the province are also writing letters to the municipality," he said, "because it will be easier from the municipality, the procedure has been revised and it has been arranged to bring it from the municipality if the ward is close to the ward and if the municipality is close to the municipality."

should be increased. But only one week left for the period. Therefore, the energy promoter is confused about whether he can/can't get the survey permission after taking the recommendation. "The procedure was amended at the last moment, although it is convenient, time is short," said a solar promoter, "It is to bring the letter from the municipality and the department to give the survey license within this time or not." 

The promoter said that the authority will be asked to extend the time based on the government work done this week. "The authority should add time, all the promoters will request for that," said the promoter. Executive Director of Nepal Electricity Authority Kulman Ghising said that there is time left in the specified period. "If they do not come with the survey license within the specified time period and ask for time, the authority will consider it," he said. The authority called for proposals for 800 MW of solar energy last March.  In the

proposal, 134 companies submitted proposals equal to 3600 megawatts. Out of the proposals received, only 3492.5 MW of 127 companies were eligible for financial offerors through technical evaluation. Only 960 MW of 63 companies were selected from the financial proposal opened last October. The selection for PPA was based on the lowest cost in the financial proposal and the capacity of the substation. According to the authority, there is a provision that more than 20 percent can be selected only by asking for proposals.

Accordingly, 63 companies with a capacity of 960 MW were selected for PPA. Within 90 days of the letter of intent issued on November 14, i.e. February 15, the selected companies will have to submit a survey permit to the authority with a bond of Rs. The PPA draft should be discussed and concluded between the authority and the selected company within the next Chait 1. The authority should conclude a PPA with the selected company within one month after the company submits the performance security.