On Sunday, Nepal decided to approve the development of a second hydropower project in the nation by Indias Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVN) Limited. Currently, SJVN is working on a 900 MW run-of-river hydroelectric project called Arun-III, which is expected to be finished in 2024 and is situated on the Arun River in Eastern Nepal.A meeting of the Investment Board Nepal (IBN), presided over by Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal “Prachanda,” approved the draught project development agreement (PDA) that will be signed with Indias state-owned SJVN to develop the 669 megawatts (MW) Lower Arun Hydropower project in eastern Nepal.The approval for the project has been announced ahead of Nepals Prime Minister Dahals visit to India starting Wednesday.Reportedly, before the implementation of the project, the draft will get endorsed by the Council of Ministers. And as per the previous meeting of the Investment Board Nepal, Rs 92.68 billion has already been approved for the investment.Taking it to Twitter, “The 54th meeting of the Investment Board chaired by the Rt. Honble Prime Minister held at the OPMCM today, has taken crucial decisions regarding the 669 MW Lower Arun Hydroelectric Project and obtained the updated status of the 756 MW Tamor Storage Hydroelectric Project.”The 54th meeting of the Investment Board chaired by the Rt. Honble Prime Minister held at the OPMCM today, has taken crucial decisions regarding the 669 MW Lower Arun Hydroelectric Project and obtained updated status of 756 MW Tamor Storage Hydroelectric Project. pic.twitter.com/U7DtXP4aZu— Office of the Investment Board Nepal🇳🇵 (@IBNOffice) May 28, 2023 The Lower Arun project, which is located in the Sankhuwasabha and Bhojpur districts, will be a tailrace development of Arun-III and will not have any reservoirs or dams, meaning water will re-enter the river for the project.After the 900 MW Arun-III and 695 MW Arun-IV hydroelectricity projects, this is the third project on the Arun River that has been undertaken, all through negotiating periods. The three projects in the Sankhuwasabha district will use the river to produce roughly 2,300 MW of power.
