Available online at www.sciencedirect.

com

ScienceDirect
Energy Procedia 110 (2017) 581 – 585

1st International Conference on Energy and Power, ICEP2016, 14-16 December 2016, RMIT
University, Melbourne, Australia

A review of hydropower projects in Nepal

Firoz Alama, Quamrul Alamb, Suman Rezac, SM Khurshid-ul-Alamc, Khondkar Salequeb,
Harun Chowdhurya,*
a
School of Engineering, RMIT University, Melbourne 3000, Australia
b
Department of Management, Monash University, Australia
c
Prime Minister's Office, Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh

Abstract

Power generation using hydro resources offers sustainable, zero energy input cost, zero greenhouse gas emission, low operating
and maintenance cost alternative to fossil fuel based power generation. Currently, nearly 17% of the world’s total power generation
is based on hydro resources and its share to renewable power generation is 70%. Although hydropower is produced in 150 countries,
Nepal’s economically feasible hydropower generation capacity is one of the highest. However, this huge hydropower potential is
still untapped. By harnessing the hydro resources Nepal can meet its domestic demand, create a surplus for export and generate
employment for its citizens. This paper reviews Nepal’s current hydropower resources, projects, future plan and their impact on
the economy.
© 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
© 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Peer-review under responsibility of the organizing committee of the 1st International Conference on Energy and Power.
Peer-review under responsibility of the organizing committee of the 1st International Conference on Energy and Power.
Keywords: Hydropower; Power Trading; Energy Security; Environmental Impact; Economic Impact.

1. Introduction

The Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal with over 28 million inhabitants is a land locked Himalayan state located
between India (east, south and west) and China (north). Its land area is very close the entire area of Bangladesh
(147,181 square kilometer). Nepal is a mountainous nation. Its altitude ranges from 60 m to 8,848 m (Mt Everest), the

* Corresponding author. Tel.: +61399256103; fax: +61399256108.

E-mail address: harun.chowdhury@rmit.edu.au

1876-6102 © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Peer-review under responsibility of the organizing committee of the 1st International Conference on Energy and Power.
doi:10.1016/j.egypro.2017.03.188
582 Firoz Alam et al. / Energy Procedia 110 (2017) 581 – 585

highest altitude in the planet earth. It has three large river systems: a) Koshi River system, b) Gandaki (Narayani)
River system, and c) Karnali (Goghra/Mahakali) River system which are shown in Fig. 1.
Karnali
(Goghra/Mahakali)
River System

Gandaki (Narayani)
River System

Koshi River
System

Fig. 1. Major river systems in Nepal, adapted from [8].

The Koshi River system is the largest and originated from the top four Himalayan peaks (Mt. Everest-8,850 m, Mt.
Jannu-7,710 m, Mt. Makalu-8,462 m and Mt. Cho Oyu-8,201 m). The Koshi is also called Sapta Koshi for its seven
Himalayan tributaries in eastern Nepal: Indrawati, Sun Koshi, Tama Koshi, Dudh Koshi, Liku, Arun, and Tamor. The
Arun rises in Tibet some 150 km beyond Nepal's northern border. A tributary of the Sun Koshi, Bhote Koshi also
originated in Tibet and is followed by the Arniko Highway connecting Kathmandu (Nepal) and Lhasa (Tibet-China)
[1-3, 7-8].
The Gandaki/Narayani river system originated from Mt. Annapurna (8,091 m) and Mt. Manashu (8,163 m). The
Gandaki/Narayani has seven Himalayan tributaries in the middle of Nepal: Daraudi, Seti Gandaki, Madi, Kali,
Marsyandi, Budhi, and Trisuli. This is why the Gandaki/Narayani river system also called Sapta Gandaki. The river
Kali Gandaki rises on the edge of the Tibetan Plateau and flows through the semi-independent Kingdom of Mustang,
then between the 8,000 m Dhaulagiri and Annapurna ranges in the world's deepest valley. The Trisuli rises north of
the international border inside Tibet. After the seven upper tributaries join, the river becomes the Narayani inside
Nepal and is joined by the (East) Rapti from Chitwan Valley. After crossing into India, its name has been changed to
Gandaki and finally joins the Ganges River system [1-3, 7-8].
The Karnali/Ghaghara originated from two mountain peaks: Api (7,132 m) and Kanjiroba (6,883 m). The Karnali
drains western Nepal, with the Bheri and Seti as major tributaries. The upper Bheri drains Dolpo, a remote valley
beyond the Dhaulagiri Himalaya. The upper Karnali rises inside Tibet near Lake Manasarovar and Mount Kailash.
The area around these features is the hydrographic nexus of South Asia since it holds the sources of the Indus and its
major tributary the Sutlej, the Karnali-a Ganges tributary and the Yarlung Tsangpo/Brahmaputra. The Mahakali or
Kali along the Nepal-India border on the west joins the Karnali in India, where the river is known as Ghaghara [1-3,
7-8].
All three major river systems possess multiple tributaries rising in or around the high Himalaya maintaining
substantial water flows during summer and spring. These rivers finally discharge water into the Ganges River system
to the Bay of Bengal (Indian Ocean). The tributaries of these river systems cross the highest mountains in deep gorges,
 Firoz Alam et al. / Energy Procedia 110 (2017) 581 – 585 583

flow south through the Middle Hills, then join in candelabra-like configuration before crossing the Mahabharat Range
and emerging onto the plains with over 10,000 km2 area. All Nepalese rivers have strong water flow however these
river systems do not support any significant commercial navigation due to deep gorges creating obstacles [1-3, 7-8].

2. Hydro Resources of Nepal

Due to steep gradient and mountainous topography, Nepal is blessed with the abundant hydro resources. The
country’s three major river systems and their smaller tributaries offer Nepal to produce economically and technically
feasible nearly 50,000 MW power. Nepal can potentially generate over 90,000 MW hydropower [1]. Despite having
such huge hydropower, Nepal only generates around 847 MW from its hydro resources. Today nearly half of Nepal’s
population have no access to grid connected power. The shortage of power hinders the industrialization and economic
progress. Despite having huge hydro energy, only 1% energy need of Nepal is fulfilled by the hydropower. The energy
mix of Nepal is dominated by fuel wood (68%), agricultural waste (15%), animal dung (8%) and imported fossil fuel
(8%) [9]. Without increasing dependency on hydropower, it is hard for Nepal to reduce deforestation, soil erosion and
flooding downstream in the Ganges plain. Shortage of firewood also compels farmers to burn animal dung-a much
needed organic fertilizer for agriculture [9].
At present, Nepal’s total power generation is around 900 MW power of which Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA)
generates 539 MW (485 MW from hydro and 54 MW from liquid fuel). Independent Power Producers (IPP) generates
361 MW from hydro [6]. There are over 100 micro hydropower plants (not connected with the grid) generate around
5 MW in total [4]. Table 1 shows the major hydropower plants currently under operation in Nepal. As per the
Department of Energy [2], the hydropower plant based capacity is classified into 3 categories: a) Large Hydropower
Plant that generates power over 10 MW, b) Small Hydropower Plant which generates between 1 and 10 MW, and c)
Micro Hydropower Plant that produces less than 1 MW. Additionally, occasionally hydropower plants are also
classified based on their hydraulic head (defined as the distance from the water surface level to turbine level).

Table 1. Major Hydropower Plants currently under operation in Nepal, adapted from [4-6]

Name Installed Capacity River Established Head Cost US $

MW Year m million
1 Kaligandaki A 144.0 Gandaki 2002 115 355
2 Middle Marsyangdi 70.0 Marsyangdi 2008 108 257
3 Marsyangdi 69.0 Marsyangdi 1989 91 222
4 Kulekhani I 60.0 Kulekhani 1982 550 118
5 Kulekhani II 32.0 Kulekhani 1986 284
6 Trisuli 24.0 Trisuli 1967 54 -
7 Gandaki 15.0 Gandaki - 130 -
8 Modi khola 14.8 Modi Khola 2000 67 30
9 Devighat 15.0 Trisuli 1984 40 8.5
10 Sunkoshi 10.0 Sunkoshi 1972 31 2
11 Puwa Khola 6.2 Puwa Khola 1999 304 16
Total 460.0

Although Nepal’s hydropower development started with 0.5 MW plant in Pharping near Kathmandu, 103 years ago
(one of the earliest in Asia), as mentioned earlier Nepal’s total hydropower is around 847 MW today. The power
shortage is so acute that the load shedding is over 4 to 5 hours each day. The shortfall of power (to meet the grid
connected load requirements) is over 500 MW as peak power demand reaches over 1,300 MW. During lean session,
the shortage of power becomes more severe.
Nepal and India have developed a large-capacity power interconnection between Muzaffarpur of Bihar (India) and
Dhalkebar of Nepal to exchange/trade power up to 1,000 MW [5, 7]. Currently Nepal imports power (~80 MW)
through this interconnector. However, the current capacity of Nepal’s national transmission grid is an impediment as
584 Firoz Alam et al. / Energy Procedia 110 (2017) 581 – 585

Nepal’s national transmission grid capacity is only 132 kV. The NEA has planned to upgrade the capacity of the line
to 220 kV by the end of 2016 and finally its full capacity of 400 kV by the end of 2017. The World Bank has committed
US $138 million for this interconnector project [5, 7].
Currently over 12 hydropower projects are under construction in Nepal. Some major under-construction projects
are shown in Table 2. Several projects are supposed to be completed in 2016.2017. Due to recent severe earthquake,
most hydro projects have been delayed [7]. The government of Nepal has developed a plan “2016–2026 National
Energy Crisis Reduction and Electricity Development Decade in February 2016. This plan aims to end the current
power shortages within three years and to generate surplus power for export [7]. Some prospective (future) power
plants are shown in Table 3. However, no detailed feasibility study has been undertaken or reported about these hydro
projects. It may be noted that most Nepalese power plants are “Run-of-River" type. Hence they generate power well
during the monsoon season and less power during the dry season.

Table 2. Major hydropower plants under construction, adapted from [4-7]

Name Installed River Commission Head Cost Shareholders

Capacity US $
MW Year m million
1 Upper Tamakosi 456 Tamakoshi Mid 2016 822 355 NEA-41%, NTC-6%, CIT-2%,
RBS-2%, Public-15%, Dolakha
District-10%, EPF-24%
2 Tanahu 140 Seti - 116 404 NEA (ADB-120 m, JICA-184, Abu
Dhabi Fund-30 m, European
Investment Bank -70 m)
3 *Rasuwagadi 111 Trishuli - 168 120 NEA-18%, CHCL-33%, Public
share-49%
4 Madhya Bhotekoshi 102 Bhotekoshi 2017 236 156 CHCL-38%, NEA-13%, Public
share-49%
5 Upper Trisuli 3A 60 Upper Trisuli - 95 115 NEA, China Exim Bank (1.75%
rate)
6 Sanjen 42.5 Chilime
7 Upper Trisuli 3B 42 Upper Trisuli
8 Rahughat 32 Upper Karnali - 67 Indian Exim Bank
9 Chameliya 30 Trisuli
10 Upper Sanjen 14.6 Sanjen
11 Kulekhani III 14 Kulekhani
Total 1,044.00
Note: NEA- Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), NTC- Nepal Telecom, CIT- Citizen Investment Trust, RBS- Rastriya Beema Sansthan, and
EPF- Employees Provident Fund (EPF)

Table 3. Major proposed hydropower plants, adapted from [4-7, 9]

Name Installed Capacity River Commissioned Head Cost US $

MW Year m million
1 Dudh Koshi Storage 640.0 Koshi - - -
2 Tamor Storage 530.0 Tamor - 490 -
3 Upper Arun 335.0 Arun - - -
4 Uttar Ganga Storage 300.0 Uttar Ganga - - -
5 Chainpur Seti 140.0 Seti - -
6 Tamakoshi V 87.0 Tamakoshi - - -
7 Upper Bheri 85.0 Bheri - - -
8 Upper Modi A 42.0 Modi - - -
9 Upper Modi 18.2 Modi - - -
Total 2,177.2
 Firoz Alam et al. / Energy Procedia 110 (2017) 581 – 585 585

3. Discussion and Conclusion

Having a theoretical potential of nearly 90,000 MW hydropower at least 42,000 MW is technically and
economically feasible. Unfortunately, Nepal is utilizing only 2% of it (i.e., 98% remains unutilized). On the other
hand, over 60% population do not have access to grid connected power in Nepal. Moreover, the annual growth of
power demand (grid connected) is over 10%. During the lean season, the power shortage becomes so acute that NEA
needs to ration the power up to 12 hours each day. Nepal's prosperity is certainly dependent on the utilization of its
hydro resources. However, it does neither have financial resources nor technical know-how to explore the full potential
of hydro resources. For large scale investment in hydropower projects, Nepal needs to attract foreign sovereign and
private investments as well as markets for power sale.
Several countries led by India and China have been negotiating with Nepal for possible invest in large-scale
hydropower projects. The economic development in the region (northern India, Bangladesh and central southern
China) requires power especially green power. Nepal’s hydropower suits their needs well. As hydropower projects
require huge capital investment, Nepal should pursue joint venture hydro projects with India and Bangladesh. This
will allow peacefully develop Nepal’s hydropower as well secured power purchase agreement with India and
Bangladesh for sustained power trade.
Nepal can be one of the major green power exporters in the region. The revenue from power export will help to
achieve economic prosperity and generate funds for education, healthcare, housing, agriculture and infrastructures.
During hydropower developments in Nepal, some extra care is required to be undertaken. Nepal’s topography is
unstable due to seismic activities. Hence, all hydropower plants with dam must be well planned and designed to
mitigate the environmental impact. Most Himalayan Rivers contain huge quantities of sediment with hard abrasive
particles. The region’s climate and tectonic conditions as well as human activities are highly conducive for erosion
and sedimentation. Therefore, sediment management is paramount for the safety, reliability and longer life of
infrastructures (hydropower dam, equipment, roads, bridges, irrigation systems and drinking water).

References

[1] Bergner M. Development of Nepal’s Hydroelectric Resources: Policy Alternatives. USA: University of Virginia; 2013.
[2] Department of Energy, USA: http://energy.gov/eere/water/types-hydropower-plants
[3] Classification of Hydroelectric Power Plants (2014), December 17, 2014: http://hubpages.com/technology/Classification-of-Hydroelectric-
Power-Plants
[4] A Year in Review: Fiscal Year 2014/2015, Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), Kathmandu, Nepal, accessed on 18 October 2016 from
http://www.nea.org.np
[5] http://kathmandupost.ekantipur.com/printedition/news/2014-11-10/power-up.html
[6] Department of Electricity Development, Ministry of Energy, Nepal: accessed on 20 October 2016 from www.doed.gov.np
[7] Hydropower Status Report (2016), International Hydropower Association, London, UK, accessed on 26 November 2016 from
https://www.hydropower.org
[8] Wekipedia, accessed on 12 November 2016 from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geography_of_Nepal
[9] Independent Power Producers’ Association, Nepal (IPPAN), accessed on 10 December 2016 from http://www.ippan.org.np/HPinNepal.html