KATHMANDU: Nepal was able to achieve a net positive balance in its electricity trade in the most recent fiscal year 2023–2024, which means that the money earned from power exports exceeded the money spent on buying electricity from India. According to the Nepal Energy Authority (NEA), the country gained a net gain of over Rs 120 million from the sale of energy valued at Rs 16.93 billion to India and the purchase of energy valued at Rs 16.81 billion. The accomplishment, according to Kulman Ghising, managing director of the NEA, can be ascribed to the growing contributions from the private energy sector, a notable departure from Nepal's prior reliance on imports.
The NEA ended daily power cuts of up to 18 hours on May 13, 2018, and began exporting electricity to India three years ago. Since then, it has entered India's Day-Ahead market and currently sells 690 MW of electricity daily from 16 hydropower projects. The NEA is also awaiting a permit to export an additional 400 MW. During the months of June through November, when production peaks, Nepal exports its excess energy and imports it during the dry season.
Nepal imported 1.8335 billion units of electricity at an average cost of Rs 9.17 per unit in FY 2023–2024, while exporting 1.9426 billion units at an average cost of Rs 8.72 per unit. There was not much electricity wasted, even though private hydropower stations occasionally had technical problems. Over the next ten years, Nepal and India have agreed to sell 10,000 MW of electricity, and although there might be occasional winter shortages, exports are anticipated to rise. In comparison to prior years, when Nepal may have spent up to Rs 23 billion on imports, this represents a significant improvement, with expenditures falling to Rs 19.44 billion in FY 2022–2023 while export earnings reached Rs 10.45 billion.
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