Energy producers have said that about 300 megawatts of electricity has started being wasted after the Nepal Electricity Authority cut the lines of large industries in the dedicated and trunk line dispute. They say that electricity is being wasted even during the rainy season and demand is reduced due to industries closing during Dashain-Tihar.

This year, the NEA has wasted more electricity after cutting power to 25 industries during the Tihar festival. After cutting power lines to dozens of large industries that consume a lot of electricity at once, 300 megawatts of electricity have been wasted. However, NEA sources say that 150 megawatts of electricity were being wasted even before the industries were cut. ‘Before the industries were cut, 150 megawatts of electricity were being wasted,’ the source said, ‘After the industries were cut, 300 megawatts of electricity are being wasted. Overload and market are the main problems.’

The 54-megawatt Superdordi Hydropower Project in Lamjung is a contingency project. Although a power purchase agreement (PPA) was initially signed on a ‘take or pay’ basis, it has been kept in ‘contingency’ for three years, saying that the transmission line capacity could not support it. After the closure of large industries, the project was sometimes shut down and sometimes operated at only 5 to 7 megawatts, said Arjun Gautam, the project operator.

‘The project has been in contingency for three years, it has not been running properly since Asoj,’ he said, ‘Sometimes the power plant is shut down, sometimes only 5/7 megawatts are produced.’

Gautam also said that only 7 percent of the project has been operational since Kartik. Although the NEA’s own hydropower project is in operation, private projects have had to be operated with reduced capacity as directed, energy producers say. The electricity from the 84-megawatt Rahughat project has been completely wasted. Indra Dhakal, general manager of the project promoter Tundi Power Company, said that all the electricity from the project has been wasted.

The 44-megawatt Super Madi Hydropower Project in Kaski was operating at full capacity. This project is not in contingency either. But after the lines were cut to large industries, a director of the Super Madi Hydropower Company said that the NEA is buying only 15 megawatts of electricity per day. The director says that even though they used to buy only 28/30 megawatts of electricity as electricity consumption decreases during festivals, it has now decreased even more.

While Nepal's total installed capacity has reached 3,700 MW, the private sector's production capacity is only 3,000 MW. According to the NEA, more than 1,000 MW of electricity is being exported. In the dedicated and trunkline arrears dispute, industrialists are demanding time-of-day (TOD) meter bills, while the NEA has been demanding payment of the arrears, saying that the bills have already been paid.

After the industrialists and the NEA have taken their respective stances, the Confederation of Nepalese Industries has urged for a resolution through dialogue. The Confederation issued a press release on Thursday, urging the industrialists and the government to immediately engage in dialogue to resolve the dispute. The Confederation also stated that it is ready to facilitate the dialogue if necessary. 'The Confederation had suggested to the then government to form a high-level commission to resolve the dispute related to dedicated and trunklines, which has been simmering for years,' the statement said. The Confederation said that the inability to resolve the arrears dispute for a long time has not sent a good message in the national and international arena and is affecting the investment environment, so it is imperative to resolve the dispute.

‘The country’s economy is in a challenging situation, and manufacturing industries are operating industries by producing goods at low capacity, and when the NEA cuts the power lines in some industries, those industries are further affected, and the workers working in those industries are also affected,’ the statement said. ‘Therefore, the Confederation sincerely urges the industrialists and the government to immediately engage in dialogue to resolve the dispute.’ Meanwhile, the All Nepal Industries Trade Union (HABIN) has objected to the decision to cut off power to some industries in the country by the Ministry of Energy and the Nepal Electricity Authority. HABIN says that more than 30,000 workers working in those industries have been directly or indirectly affected after the power supply to some large industrial establishments was shut down on the instructions of Energy Minister Kulman Ghising.

‘This action of the government has put the employment, income and livelihood of thousands of workers in danger, which is completely irresponsible, inhumane, anti-national and anti-worker,’ the statement said. ‘The union strongly demands that the Energy Minister’s arbitrary decision to stop the criminal act that is stopping the nation’s production and immediately reconnect the electricity to the affected industries.’