Construction of 135 MW Manang Marsyangdi hydropower project to start soon with financial closure completed

November 22, Kathmandu: Financial closure for the 135 MW Manang Marsyangdi Hydropower Project (MMHP) has been secured with the signing of the Loan Agreement with the Export-Import Bank of China (Exim Bank) during a ceremony on Friday at the presence of the Chinese Ambassador to Nepal Chen Song.

Accordingly, the EXIM Bank will provide 175,250,000 USD while the remaining estimated cost of 323,000,000 will be met through other sources.

Butwal Power Company Limited, Chinese investors SCIG International Ltd, Xincheng International Investment Co. Ltd, and QYEC International Co. Ltd. and their joint venture company SCIG International Nepal are the investors of the Manang Marsyangdi Hydropower Project Company Limited (MMHCPL).

Chinese company Sinohydro Bureau 7 C0. Ltd. has already started the construction of MMHP and is estimated to complete the project within 42 months.

The MMHP is located in Chame and Nasong Rural Municipality of Manang district. A dam will be constructed in the Marsyangdi River at Chame-3 and the powerhouse in Nasong-9 of the district.

The MMHP will generate 766 Gigawatt-Hoiur (GWh) of energy annually. MMHP is the first project out of three hydropower projects being developed under cascade modality by the same investors, each through separate project companies.

The other two projects are the 139.2 MW Lower Manang Marsyangdi Hydropower Project and the 327 MW Upper Marsyangdi-2 Hydropower Project in Manang and Lamjung districts.

The combined capacity of these three projects is 601 MW with a total estimated project cost of 1.2 billion USD, according to a statement released by the MMHCPL.