South Asia Regional Energy Integration: Nepal Upper Arun Hydroelectric Project SOP1

dropped

Failure

The proposed Project is the first of a Series of Projects (SOP) developed under a programmatic approach and progressively implemented to support the transition to a regional electricity market by countries in South Asia by means of investments in energy infrastructure critical for furthering regional electricity trade. This Project will enable the development of the Upper Arun Hydroelectric Project (UAHEP) on the Arun River in eastern Nepal, about 10 kilometers south of Nepal’s border with the People's Republic of China. The UAHEP is a peaking run-of-river plant with installed capacity of 1,040 MW and diurnal storage of 6 hours. A 23 km long access road will be constructed to connect the power plant to the Koshi Highway. A 5.8 km long 400 kV double circuit transmission line will be constructed to evacuate power to Nepal’s grid. The Project will also support advancing the regional dialogue in South Asia, support disaster risk management on the Arun River, and enhance the resilience of the Koshi Province power system. The Government of Nepal has prioritized the development of this Project to augment power generation in the integrated Nepal power system, due to its relatively low cost of generation and availability of abundant firm energy. The Project also includes a community support program and an indigenous people’s plan.

FY17 - Energy and Extractives

World Bank Group

Project

Road, Power Generation (CCGT), Government, Hydro