The construction of a 400 kV substation is progressing rapidly in Barhabise Municipality, Sindhupalchok district.
The substation is being built to transmit electricity from hydropower projects currently under construction in the Tamakoshi, Sun Koshi rivers, and their tributaries to the national transmission grid, and enhancing the country's overall transmission system.
Two substations, 220/132 kV and 132/11 kV, have already been completed at the same site, and equipment testing has also been successfully conducted.
According to the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), all the equipment for the 400 kV Barhabise substation, based on Gas Insulated System (GIS) technology, has been supplied to the construction site.
With the completion of the civil structures for the power transformers, installation is currently underway. The civil structures for the control room and GIS equipment building are also under construction.
The substation has achieved approximately 70 percent progress so far, with authorities aiming to complete it by mid-June 2025.
"Once the substation is completed, electricity from hydropower projects along the Balephi and Bhote Koshi river corridors will be fed into the national grid via the Barhabise-Khimti 400 kV transmission line,” said NEA Managing Director Kulman Ghising during his visit to the construction site on Saturday, November 30. “This will allow more electricity to be brought into the Kathmandu Valley during the winter months and exported to India during the monsoon.”
He urged the project management and construction contractors to complete the project on time.
As part of the Khimti, Barhabise, and Lapsiphedi 400 kV substation project, three transmission line projects are currently under construction: the 43-km New Khimti-Barhabise line, part of the 220/400 kV Tamakoshi-Kathmandu Transmission Line Project; the 46-km 400 kV double-circuit Barhabise-Lapsiphedi line; and the 132 kV Lapsiphedi-Changunarayan line.
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According to the NEA, local obstructions have caused delays in some sections of the construction.
Once the 400 kV transmission line, funded by the U.S. Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), is completed, NEA will be able to transmit electricity from Lapsiphedi to the new Butwal substation in Bhumahi, Nawalparasi (Bardaghat-Susta West).
