By A Staff Reporter
Kathmandu, Mar. 14: The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has decided to supply about 35 MW of electricity to the Ambe Steels Industry in Nepalgunj area of Banke within a month.
The NEA is currently supplying about eight megawatt of electricity to the steel industry.
The industry has demanded an additional 27 MW of electricity for capacity expansion.

The NEA is going to supply 35 MW of electricity to Ambe Steels with an additional 27 MW within a month after completing the construction of all the necessary structures to supply electricity to the industry, said NEA.
Construction of a 33 kV double circuit transmission line from Kohalpur substation has reached the final stage to supply electricity to the industry.

The industry has also finalised the construction of substations on its premises and capacity expansion of the factory to get additional power supply.
A team led by NEA managing director Kul Man Ghising visited the site on Saturday and discussed electrical infrastructure to be constructed to supply electricity to the industries operating in Nepalgunj and Kolalpur industrial areas and which may open in the coming days.

The team has requested the industry management to complete all the preliminary work within a month by visiting Ambe Steels, which consumes the largest amount of electricity in Nepalgunj area, and getting electricity supply within a month.

"We are supplying the required amount of electricity to the industries to increase power consumption. In order to increase the power consumption in the industrial corridor, new infrastructure has been constructed and the existing structures have been strengthened and upgraded," said Ghising.

"Ambe Steels seems to be in the final stage of building its infrastructure for power connections. The power supply can be provided as soon as the industry completes the necessary preparations. We have no problem."

He said that the process of construction of 132 kV substation has been forwarded as other industries will be opened in the area operated by Ambe Steels and the area is being developed as an industrial corridor.

Land acquisition has been started for construction of a substation. Concessional loan agreement has been signed with the Asian Development Bank.
Electricity will be supplied to the industries in the coming days through 132 kV substation by constructing a four-circuit 132 kV line about 10 kilometers from the existing east-west 132 kV transmission line.

"If we cannot sell the surplus electricity to India and increase domestic consumption, around 500 MW of electricity will be wasted daily in the rainy season.
Therefore, we should focus on increasing power consumption in big industries,” said Ghising. "For this, we have planned to build infrastructure for power supply in industrial corridors."

Chief of Kohalpur Distribution Centre Suraj Regmi said that work is underway as per the plan to add lines and transformers to double the capacity of the existing distribution system to provide reliable, quality and required amount of electricity to the industrial and domestic customers of Kohalpur area. The NEA is constructing electrical infrastructure with high capacity transmission and distribution lines in the Bara-Parsa area, Bhairawa, Sunwal, Parasi and other areas which are likely to become industrial hubs.