Around 80 percent construction works of 456MW Upper Tamakoshi Hydropower Project has been completed.

The project was scheduled to be completed by mid-July 2016, by events like last year’s earthquakes and India’s blockade, and other technical and social issues, pushed back the completion date.

Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has said it will take two more years for the project to complete. “Upper Tamakoshi will go online by July 2018,” said NEA Managing Director Mukesh Raj Kafle.

After multiple amendments, the total project cost has been estimated at Rs35.29 billion. As of now, around Rs 30 billion has been spent and as per the estimation.

However, the cost is expected to increase, according to the project’s progress report as of mid-June 2016. The report has attributed the earthquakes and blockade for the delay. “Frequent floods during the monsoon affected the prescheduled work of the project,” said Bigyan Prasad Shrestha, project chief.

The project has categorised the development works into four categories — civil, hydro mechanical, mechanical electrical, transmission line and supervision work.

According to Ganesh Neupane, spokesperson for the project, they have started digging 60 metre-long tunnel at Kavre Bhir and it is expected to complete by October.

Out of six units in the powerhouse, construction of four units is underway. Also, the construction of a 47 km–long 220 kva transmission line is also underway.