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In a major achievement, public sector hydropower major SJVN Ltd on Sunday signed a pact with the Investment Board of Nepal for the development of 679 MW Lower Arun Hydroelectric Project - its second in the Himalayan nation.

The project has been allocated through international competitive bidding, said SJVN Chairman and Managing Director Nand Lal Sharma.

A memorandum of understanding was signed in the presence of Nepal's Deputy Prime Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel and Indian Ambassador Vinay Mohan Kwatra.

The Lower Arun Hydroelectric Project is located in Sankhuwasabha and Bhojpur districts. It will not have any reservoir or dam and will be a tailrace development of 900 MW Arun-III project.

The project will have four francis type turbines. On completion, they will generate 2,970 million units of electricity per annum. The project is scheduled to be completed in four years after commencement of construction activities.

The project has been allocated to the SJVN for 25 years on a build-own-operate-transfer (BOOT) basis.

Sharma expressed gratitude to the Nepalese government for keeping faith in the abilities and capabilities of the SJVN by selecting it as developer for the new project.

SJVN Ltd, a joint venture of the Central and the Himachal Pradesh governments, started its journey in Nepal in 2008 by signing a pact for the implementation of 900 MW Arun-III project.

Its construction started with the laying of foundation stone jointly by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Nepalese counterpart, K.P. Sharma Oli, in 2018.

Sharma said the 900 MW Arun III project has achieved significant progress in the last three years despite the Covid-19 pandemic. To mitigate delays, SJVN Ltd has already implemented acceleration plan and is committed to commission this project ahead of schedule.

He emphasised such progress could not have been achieved without the continuous support of IBN and the government of Nepal. The requisite approvals were granted in a shortest possible time despite the challenges faced due the pandemic.

Sharma noted that the hydropower has to be developed with the integrated river basin development approach for economic viability and to give boost to infrastructural development.

This approach will result in optimisation of resources and faster project completion at lower cost. He requested the government of Nepal for providing further opportunity to SJVN Ltd in partnering with the government for harnessing hydropower in Nepal.

The SJVN's present installed capacity is 2,016.51 MW and it aims to be 5,000 MW company by 2023, 12,000 MW by 2030 and 25,000 MW company by 2040.

It has presence in various sectors of energy generation which includes hydro, wind, solar, and thermal. The company also has presence in the field of energy transmission.