Energy mix of Nepal, which till date is dominated by hydropower, is expected to be more diverse in coming years with more private developers showing interest in installing solar plants in different locations.

Workers’ remittances in the first seven months of the fiscal year swelled 285 percent year-on-year, providing a much needed cushion to the country’s depleting foreign exchange reserves.

Private developers of hydropower projects have asked the government to address obstacles hampering their operations like delays in getting forest clearance, difficulties in obtaining explosives required for blasting rocks, and delays in the construction of power lines to evacuate the electricity generated.

The Kulekhani-3 Hydropower Project is finally nearing completion 11 years after construction started. Time overruns due to slowpoke contractors resulted in the 14 MW scheme missing half a dozen completion deadlines.

The government has amended the Forest Act and included a new provision which will allow the developer of certain infrastructure projects to acquire forest lands required for the construction of the project by paying a fee.

The construction of the Middle Bhotekoshi Hydroelectric Project, which had started to pick up speed after being stymied by a series of natural disasters like the 2015 earthquake, floods and soil erosion, has once again hit a setback with the contractor having money problems.

Workers finally started installing penstock pipes at the Upper Tamakoshi Hydropower Project after a new contractor took charge of the construction of the plant.

Nepal Infrastructure Bank, the first private sector-led financial institution in the country established with the objective of funding large infrastructure projects, threw open its doors on Wednesday.

The government is hopeful of achieving an economic growth rate of 7-8 percent despite a slowdown in capital expenditure.

Six international companies have shown interest in executing a component of the Tamakoshi-Kathmandu Transmission Line Project being developed by the Nepal Electricity Authority.

The Indian government has approved an investment proposal to build a transmission line in eastern Nepal to evacuate the electricity generated by Arun-3 Hydropower Project being developed by an Indian state-owned company.

Huaxin Cement Narayani, a Nepali-Chinese joint venture formed to establish a cement factory in Dhading district is all set to start the construction of the plant. According to Investment Board Nepal, the government agency facilitating the joint venture company told the Post that the foundation stone of the factory will be laid within a few days.

The Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry has decided to back down from its demand for lower interest rates.

The Cabinet recently approved a bill governing public-private partnership and foreign direct investment projects that gives Investment Board Nepal new powers to approve schemes worth more than Rs6 billion Currently, only investments of more than Rs10 billion come under the board’s purview as per the Investment Board Act which regulates its operation and functioning

Bankers have denounced the central bank’s recently introduced policy which asked banks and financial institutions to adopt a new formula to calculate the spread rate at which they are allowed to operate by the regulator.