Minister promises 5,000 MW in 10 years

Even as the country is reeling under severe load shedding, the Minister for Water Resources has claimed that the government is planning to generate 5000 MW of power in coming ten years.

Minister Gyanendra Bahadur Karki told Nepal Samacharpatra daily that the government intends to attract investors to develop the power.

He said that if money and technology were available, Nepal can immediately develop 43,000 MW of power.

Minister Karki also said that Arun III and Upper Karnali projects were quite beneficial to the nation. He said so in the wake of protests that they have been handed over to foreign companies.

"These projects are being awarded to foreign companies through international competition and they are in line with the government policy of utilising hydropower to fight poverty," he said. nepalnews.com sd Jan 06 08