NEA warns to break contract as work progress is not satisfactory

KATHMANDU: Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has warned a contractor company to cancel the contract saying that the work progress is not satisfactory.

Kulman Ghising, managing director of the NEA, gave this warning while monitoring the under-construction substation at Thanabharyang in Hetauda Sub-metropolitan City of Makwanpur on Saturday.

He took information regarding the construction progress of 400kV, 220kV and 132kV substations under construction.

He went on a monitoring visit in March and warned to cancel the contract as no progress has been seen in the construction of the 220 kV substation. At that time, the contractor company promised to complete the construction of the substation within June, but contrary to the promise, no progress was seen at the construction site.

Ghising asked the representatives of the company to come to Kathmandu immediately and hold a joint meeting and if that is not possible, otherwise, the contract would be scrapped.

After the work of the Chinese company Central China Power Grid International Economic and Trade was not satisfactory, the NEA broke the contract and entered into an agreement with the joint venture of Siemens Limited and Telmos Electronics on December 20, 2018 through a tender to do the remaining work.

In this package, the construction of a 220 kV substation in Sunsari’s Inaruwa was also affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and the target was to be completed within June 2023.