Cannot be cut between the facilities provided for the duration of the license: Ippan

In a press conference held to publicize the official opinion on the proposed budget for the next fiscal year 2081/82, Ippan said that he would not accept it under any circumstances, saying that the changes made in the current economy by cutting the facilities provided by the Electricity Act 2049 have been continued. At the

conference, IPPAN President Ganesh Karki said that the government did not even listen to the demand to allow import of goods at 1% customs as a relief, even if it is only for flood-affected projects, which IPPAN has been raising on every platform for the past one year.

Karki said that while the projects that were importing goods at one percent customs duty was increased to 28 percent at once, the hydropower projects damaged by the flood and landslides were not able to bring spare parts and the project was being closed. According to the Electricity Act 2049, the electricity projects that have obtained the project permit should have a provision to charge only 1 percent customs duty on spare parts accordingly.

Ippan Senior Vice President Mohan Kumar Dangi said that the flood-affected hydropower project did not ask for any additional facilities from the government. According to Dangi, according to the Electricity Act 2049, if a permit is given for a certain year, all the facilities will be cut off if the project is put into operation. He said that the promoters demanded the right to enjoy the facilities given in the permit without asking for any sympathy from the government.

The general secretary of IPPAN Balram Khatiwada said that it is very sad that the compensation and relief that the prime minister said when inspecting the projects that have suffered physical and human damage due to the flood did not come in the budget.

He said that 10,000 megawatts of electricity will be sold between Nepal and India for a long-term basis within 10 years, the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation will produce 28,500 megawatts by 2035 and 8,500 megawatts will be produced within the next five years in the five-year plan of the National Planning Commission. Aim to He also said that the budget ignores the role, contribution and importance of the private sector to achieve the goals of this government.

The former president of IPPAN Krishna Prasad Acharya said that the private sector has been making a strong demand for electricity business, so there was no mention of electricity business in the budget. Acharya said that even though the government is aware of the procedural difficulties involved in the construction of energy projects, it has turned a blind eye to simplifying it. Acharya said that the bodies under the Ministry of Forests are the most affected bodies in the construction of hydroelectric projects and questioned the government as to where and how 28 thousand 500 megawatts will be produced since all the rivers with water are kept in conservation areas.

IPPA Deputy Secretary General Prakash Dulal said that the proposed Electricity Bill 2080 prohibits the private sector. Dulal said that in the proposed bill, it is unfair that the government does not have to compete when building projects and only the private sector should compete, this Act reduces the period of the license given by the 2049 Act for 50 years and it is proposed that the private sector be limited to projects smaller than 100 MW, Dulal said.

If the budget is reduced on the contrary of giving more budget to the energy sector, it will have a serious impact on the construction of energy-related infrastructure and there will also be problems in the transmission and distribution of electricity Ippan has informed.

There is no mention in the budget about the energy development roadmap with the production target of 28,000 megawatts prepared by the Ministry of Energy . Ippan also said that 61 trillion rupees are needed to achieve this goal, as it has been publicized in all programs related to domestic and foreign energy, it has created a shameful situation.

In order to achieve the government's goal, the budget should increase the bank's investment to 20 percent within the next 10 years, Since it has been arranged to give 100% income tax exemption for projects producing electricity up to the financial year 2082/083 and 50% income tax exemption for 5 years after that, it should be increased and provision should be made for income tax exemption for projects producing electricity up to the financial year 2092/093 according to this provision, maintenance of all electricity projects According to Ipan, these issues are not included in the budget, which suggests that only 1 percent customs duty on the import of machinery and equipment used in maintenance should be maintained, value added tax on local sale and export of electricity, incentives for energy producing companies to sell carbon in the voluntary carbon market etc. should be kept in the budget. ;

Similarly, as there has been an increase in vandalism in energy projects in the name of various demands from various agencies and individuals, the budget is expected to bring programs such as energy project security plan, solving the problem created by the illegal taxes imposed by the local government while the energy projects are paying royalties to the federal government. Ippan said that since Ippan has made several suggestions to the Minister of Finance, Minister of Energy and the Prime Minister, no matter is included in the budget.

When Nepal's total power generation capacity reaches 3200 MW, it has already produced about 2400 MW only from private sector projects, 3000 MW capacity projects are being built, 10000 MW power purchase agreement is ready to go into construction And the 184th meeting of IPPAN Working Committee has concluded that there is no budget for any kind of incentive, concession, motivation and awareness to the private sector which is carrying out studies for the construction of about 16,000 megawatt projects.

While analyzing the overall budget, we believe that the budget has ignored the necessary infrastructure and other arrangements for international electricity trade as well as the increase in consumption within the country . Even now, the budget is being discussed in the parliament and there is a possibility of approval, said Shailendra Guragain, the former president of IPPAN, said that in order to achieve the government's goals, the budget should be amended so that the private sector's demands are addressed by analyzing the contribution of the private sector.

Ippan stated that the issue of giving shares to the owners of the land in the right-of-way of the transmission line is positive, just like the distribution of shares to those affected by the hydropower project by maintaining a separate quota for the land in the right-of-way of the transmission line included in the budget .

Adding 900 megawatts of production, making legal arrangements to involve the private sector in the construction and distribution of electricity transmission lines, attracting the private sector to invest by building dams and power houses in reservoir-based hydropower projects through separate promoters, In the press conference, Ippan also said that the programs included in the budget, including the promotion of various large hydropower and transmission line projects, are positive.