Kathmandu. A joint investment agreement has been signed under the leadership of Citizens Bank International to finance the construction of the 44.52 MW SaniBheri Hydropower Project, promoted by Expert Hydro Investment Pvt. Ltd.
At a special ceremony held in Kathmandu on Monday, Citizens Bank, in partnership with Nabil Bank, Nepal Investment Mega Bank, Siddhartha Bank, and Sanima Bank, concluded the joint investment agreement with the project promoter, Expert Hydro Investment.
According to the agreement, banks and financial institutions will contribute 75 percent of the funding, while promoters will bear the remaining 25 per cent.
As per the agreement, Citizens Bank will provide Rs. 2.5 billion, Nabil Bank Rs. 1.5 billion, Nepal Investment Mega Bank Rs. 1.2 billion, Siddhartha Bank Rs. 1 billion, and Sanima Bank Rs. 1 billion. The project promoter, Expert Hydro Investment, will contribute Rs. 2.4 billion.
The loan investment agreement was signed by the company’s Managing Director Santosh Raj Nepal and Citizen Banks’ Chief Infrastructure/Consortium and Corporate Banking Officer, Roshan Malla and chief finance officers of the participating banks, in the presence of chairman of Expert Hydro Investment, AngishGhimire and Citizens Bank CEO Ganesh Prasad Pokharelalongside the CEOs and CFOs of the participating banks.
The project is expected to be completed within three and a half years of commencement. Electricity generated from the project will be evacuated through a 23-kilometre-long, 132 kV double-circuit transmission line connecting the project’s switchyard to the Nepal Electricity Authority’s Banfikot substation. It is estimated to supply 98.727 GWh during the dry season and 182.386 GWh during the wet season, contributing a total of 281.113 GWh annually to the national grid.
The SaniBheri Hydropower Project will utilise water from the SaniBheri River flowing through PuthaUttarganga and Sisne rural municipalities in Rukum East district. The project is being developed by Expert Hydro Investment. Siddhi Hydropower Company Ltd.is the main investor, while there will be contributions from Nepali entrepreneurs at home and abroad as well as the general public.
The promoting companies, Expert Hydro and Siddhi Hydropower, consist of dynamic young professionals with extensive experience in Nepal’s hydropower sector. The group also includes reputed entrepreneurs from the Australian Expert Education Group, who are also involved in Siddhi Hydropower. Construction work of Siddhi Hydropower project is near its completion and is expected to complete in short span of only 18 months.
