China Eximbank provides RMB 154 million government concessional loan for the Upper Trishuli 3A-Kathmandu 220kV Transmission Line and 132kV Line Bay Extension Works Project (Linked to Project ID#53716)

On March 27, 2011, Nepal Electricity Authority and China International Water & Energy Corporation (CWE) signed a $22.6 million EPC contract for the Upper Trishuli 3A-Kathmandu 220kV Transmission Line and 132kV Line Bay Extension Works Project. Then, in May 2011, the Export-Import Bank of China and the Government of Nepal signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the Upper Trishuli 3A-Kathmandu 220kV Transmission Line and 132kV Line Bay Extension Works Project. China Eximbank and the Government of Nepal subsequently signed a RMB 154 million ($24,335,542) government concessional loan (GCL) agreement [CHINA EXIMBANK GCL NO. (2011) 33 TOTAL NO. (1400)] on August 17, 2011 to finance the project. The reported borrowing terms of the loan are as follows: an interest rate of 1.75%, a maturity period of 25 years, and a grace period of 5 years. The loan achieved a disbursement rate of at least 56.2% ($13,684,691 out of $24,335,542), with 5 disbursements taking place between June 2014 and June 2021: a $1,290,322 disbursement on July 17, 2014, a $3,305,883 disbursement on December 18, 2018, a $4,676,694 disbursement on January 23, 2019, a $3,972,280 disbursement on June 30, 2020, and a $439,512 disbursement on June 30, 2021. The loan's amount outstanding was RMB 128,739,985.4000 ($19,896,375.2093) as of July 15, 2021. The project involved the construction of a 48 km, 220 kv double circuit transmission line from the switchyard at the Upper Trishuli 3A Hydroelectric Power Plant (located near Simle village within Kispang Rural Municipality on the borders of the Rasuwa and Nuwakot districts) to the Matatirtha substation in Kathmandu. The project was planned to be completed on August 26, 2013. However, the 2015 earthquakes in Nepal, fuel issues, land acquisition, and delays in tree-cutting permits slowed project implementation considerably. The line was completed on April 30, 2019. It began transmitting power from the Upper Trishuli 3A Hydroelectric Power Plant on November 18, 2019.

Additional details

1. The Government of Nepal’s Aid Information Management System (AMIS) records the face value of the loan as $24,335,542. However, given that the loan was provided through an RMB-denominated GCL agreement, we record the face value of the loan as RMB 154 million. 2. A report published by the Government of Nepal’s Public Debt Management Office (PDMO) puts the maturity of the loan at 10.17 years (see https://www.dropbox.com/s/2jgltrisjo9nfr1/PDMO_Annual_debt_Report_2077_1650957136.pdf?dl=0). These discrepancies warrants further investigation. 3. The Chinese project title is 垂树里至加德满都220KV输电线路及132KV线路扩展项目.

Number of official sources

13

Number of total sources

19