Jan 07: National Hydro Power Company (NHPC) is preparing to acquire Sunkoshi Hydropower Limited. NHPC holds over 97 percent stake in Sunkoshi Hydro Power Limited. 
Kumar Pandey, Chairman of NHPC, said that the necessary process to acquire Sunkoshi Hydropower Limited has been initiated. According to Pandey, both companies have formed their merger committees. 
Sunkoshi Hydropower Company was established to build a 4.5 MW Lower Indrawati hydropower project. However, the license of the project was scrapped due to technical problems. The project has now been awarded to NHPC. At present, Sunkoshi Hydropower Company does not have any project license. Therefore, it is being merged with NHPC, said Pandey.
"Since Sunkoshi Hydropower Company was left without any project, the presence of the company did not have any meaning. So, the merger with NHPC has been initiated which will help in lowering administrative costs for the company, "he said." 
He said that the merger process will be completed by mid-January. "Now that the internal preparations have been completed, we will hold a general assembly and finalize the merger process," he said.
The company is planning to distribute Rs 617 million in dividend to its shareholders as bonus shares as the write-back of the investment in Sunkoshi Hydropower has improved its financial performance. Pandey said that the company plans to offer up to 20 percent bonus shares to its shareholders from the next general meeting.