Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVN) is investing about Rs 7,000 crore in power generation and transmission in Nepal, a top company official said on Saturday.
The amount, which is equivalent to 11,200 crore Nepalese rupees, is the highest ever invested so far in Nepal by any company in the world, SJVN Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) Nand Lal Sharma said.
A joint venture of the Government of India and the Himachal Pradesh government, SJVN is investing Rs 5,724 crore in power generation and Rs 1,236 crore in power transmission in Nepal, Sharma told reporters.
SJVN is executing the Arun-3 hydro electric project (HEP) on Arun river in Sankhuwasabha district of eastern Nepal with a generation capacity of 900 MW, he added.
Work for Arun-3 HEP began on full swing after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Nepalese counterpart Khadga Prasad Sharma Oli jointly laid its foundation stone on May 11, 2018. It will be commissioned in 2023-24, he added.
The Arun-3 HEP is as prestigious for Nepal as Bhakra Dam is for India as the power generation capacity of the Himalayan country will more than double after its commissioning, he added.
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Only 750 MW power is generated in Nepal till now and with the commissioning of Arun-3 project, the power generation capacity will reach 1650 MW, he added.
The Arun-3 HEP has the potential to generate 3,924 million units of electricity every year, he added.
The power evacuation system for the project consists of a 217-km long 400 KV double circuit transmission line from Diding (project area) in Nepal to Dhalkebar (Nepal border), he added.
SJVN will get back the invested money with profit after selling the power for 25 years, he added.
Meanwhile, SJVN's earning per share increased by 50 paise in the last financial year, Sharma said.
SJVN's earning per share of face value of Rs 10 has increased to Rs 3.47 in 2018-19 from Rs 2.97 in 2017-18,