Authorities of Nepal and India will be holding a Joint Steering Committee meeting at the secretary level in New Delhi on Tuesday (today) to finalize the agreements reached during the recently concluded Nepal-India Joint Task Force on Energy. The meeting will focus on investment modalities for two proposed 400 kV transmission lines—Inaruwa-Purnia and Dodhara-Bareilly—currently under study. These modalities were agreed upon during the joint secretary-level meeting held in New Delhi on February 2.
In addition, Nepal and India have agreed to conduct studies for the construction of three new cross-border transmission lines. According to government officials, the last meeting finalized plans to study two 400 kV transmission lines—Nijgadh (Bara)-Motihari (Bihar) and Kohalpur (Banke)-Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh)—along with a 220 kV Chameliya-Jaulbibi (Uttarakhand) transmission line.
Unlike previous years, when joint secretary-level and secretary-level meetings were held on consecutive days, this time, they are being conducted separately. A delegation led by Energy Secretary Suresh Acharya reached New Delhi on Monday to attend the meeting.
“This meeting will approve the agreements reached at the joint secretary level and finalize construction modalities for key transmission lines,” said Energy Ministry Spokesperson Sandeep Dev, who is currently in New Delhi. According to him, the meeting will determine the construction modalities for the Inaruwa-Purnia and Dodhara-Bareilly transmission lines.
As per the previous agreement, a joint company will be established in both countries to construct these transmission lines, with Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) and India’s Power Grid Corporation Limited as shareholders. Nepal will hold a 51% stake in the joint company on its side, while India will own 51% on its side. The remaining 49% of shares in both companies will be allocated to another investor. It was also agreed in the previous meeting that these two transmission lines would be completed by 2030.
Regarding the transmission lines under study, the meeting decided that the Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the Chameliya-Jaulbibi 220 kV double-circuit transmission line will be completed by 2025. Similarly, construction of the 400 kV Nijgadh-Motihari and Kohalpur-Lucknow transmission lines is set to be completed by 2035.
“This meeting is significant, as these agreements will only be implemented after approval at the secretary-level meeting between the two countries,” added Spokesperson Dev.
The Government of Nepal recently unveiled the Energy Development Roadmap 2081, which aims to generate 28,500 MW of electricity by 2035 and export 15,000 MW. The roadmap identifies the lack of international transmission infrastructure as a major obstacle to cross-border electricity trade. To address this issue, Nepal plans to develop international transmission lines on a phased timeline, ensuring access to global markets and attracting domestic and international investments.
During the previous joint secretary-level meeting, discussions covered existing, under-construction, and proposed cross-border transmission lines, Indian-invested hydropower projects and related transmission infrastructure, and electricity import-export arrangements. The two sides also agreed to increase the capacity of the Dhalkebar-Muzaffarpur transmission line from 800 MW to 1,000 MW.
