May 24: Stakeholders have stressed on the need of partnership for the construction of transmission lines from the projects of the same basin of a river to the sub-station.

According to them, such partnership is required due to the problems on acquiring land for transmission lines to sub-station where there are settlements.

Kumar Pandey, Vice-President of Independent Power Producers Association of Nepal (IPPAN) said that Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) which has located its substations in residential places has created obstacles to get permission from the locals.

“If the substations were built in uninhabited places, then there would have been no problem,” he said. Constructing substations in places away from settlements is technically difficult and economically costly as different transmission lines are needed for every project.

In view of this, connecting to national grid through a single grid connection from the substation after bringing power through a single transmission line from different projects of one river basin is considered suitable.

When this is done, the cost of constructing transmission lines and grid connection will come down for all the projects of the basin. According to Prabal Adhikari, Spokesperson of NEA, some projects have already started this practice on mutual understanding.  

However, there is no situation of understanding for one single transmission line in all places and promoters, they claim. Every one wants to transmit power through less or no investment at all.

Therefore, it would be better, if the government built one transmission line in one river corridor, says Atmaram Ghimire, Managing Director of Liberty Energy Company.