Solar energy subsidy to reduce power woes

Himalayan News Service Kathmandu, March 18:

The cabinet today decided to give subsidy on solar energy even in urban centres, use electricity generated from private-sector captive plants and import substantial amount of power from India in the next four months in its bid to reduce 16-hour daily power outage.
The government has earmarked Rs 1.1 billion for subsidy on the installation of solar panels even in the urban centres and will encourage each household to install a solar panel. The cabinet decided to connect about 210 MW of energy into the national grid from the private captive plants from across the country. Modalities to purchase the energy would be worked out soon in consultation with the private sector. The government had already decided to run the two non-functioning thermal plants in Duhabi’s 39 MW Multifuel Plant and Hetauda’s 14 MW thermal plant.
Ganesh Sah, Minister for Environment, Science and Technology, told this daily that about 500 MW of electricity would be imported from India from several points on the Nepal-India border. He said construction of the transmission lines required for importing the energy would be completed within four months.
Minister for Law, Justice and Constituent Assembly Dev Prasad Gurung said the productive sectors would not require to pay the “demand charge” until full supply of energy from the national grid, and they would pay only for the energy that the industries consume. Earlier, a delegation of industrialists and businessmen had met the PM and demanded that the demand charge be withdrawn. The cabinet has also appealed to all concerned not to call any bandh or general strikes on the national highways and industrial, health and education sectors.
Asked if the cabinet considered extending the tenure of the
eight brigadier generals, Gurung, who has taken charge of Information and Communications Ministry, said no such agenda was tabled in the meeting. “They were relieved lawfully,” Gurung said. The cabinet endorsed the six-point agreement reached between the Tharu agitating groups and the government on Saturday. Bijaya Kumar Gachhadar, Minister for Physical Planning and Works, said the agreement between the two sides would be executed by amending laws.
The cabinet appointed Bharatendu Mishra as executive director of the National Agriculture Research Council and Dr Yubaraj Sangraula as advisor to home minister.

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