Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) Nepal has awarded the contract to build a 400 kV substation in Damauli of Tanahun district to Techno Electric and Engineering Company Ltd (TEECL).
The Indian firm bagged the contract to build the New Damauli substation for $38.89 million.
Khadga Bahadur Bisht, executive director at MCA-Nepal, and Rajiv Agarwal, director-commercial at TEECL, India, signed and exchanged the contract in the presence of Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Deepak Khadka, US Ambassador to Nepal Dean R Thompson, MCA-Nepal Board Members, TEECL Managing Director Padam Prakash Gupta and officials from NEA along with MCC and MCA-Nepal officials on Tuesday, according to a statement issued by MCA Nepal.
With this, MCA Nepal has completed tender process for all three substations of its Electricity Transmission Project.
Along with the three substations, the MCC Nepal Compact will fund the construction of up to 315 km of transmission line from Lapsiphedi, Kathmandu to the Nepal-India border in Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta West) under the Electricity Transmission Project. According to MCA Nepal, the bids for the 18-kilometer cross-border transmission line have been received and are undergoing evaluation. The contract is expected to be awarded in August. MCA Nepal expects to relaunch the tender process for the remaining 297 km by the end of this year.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Minister Khadka said he believes the substations would significantly contribute to strengthening the electricity distribution system in Nepal to pave the way for economic prosperity. Likewise, Finance Secretary Ram Prasad Ghimire, who also chairs the MCA Nepal board, said the three substations are essential to Nepal’s growing energy sector and will help ensure a reliable power sector to enhance industrial and commercial activities for the country’s economic growth.
Similarly, Ambassador Thompson acknowledged the roles played by all concerned for the progress of MCC projects in Nepal. “The MCC Nepal Compact is going to be an important part of our shared success story, working with Nepal to power Nepali homes, power the Nepali economy, create jobs, and reduce poverty through inclusive and sustainable economic growth,” he added.
TEECL has also bagged the contract to build the Ratmate 400 kV substation in Nuwakot district, while the contract to build the New Butwal 400 kV substation has been awarded to Linxon India.
The US is providing financial support of $500 million to execute the MCC agreement, while the Nepali government is contributing $19.7 million.
The Nepal Compact was signed by then Finance Minister Gyanendra Bahadur Karki and MCC CEO Jonathan Nash in Washington, DC on September 14, 2017.
The MCA Nepal clock started ticking on August 30, 2023.
