NEA investing Rs 1 billion to develop Pharping Hydropower Station as an ‘Energy Museum’

Kathmandu: Pharping Hydropower Station, Nepal’s first hydropower project and the second on similar infrastructure in Asia, is to be developed as an Energy Museum.

According to the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), it is going to develop the 500 KW-Pharping Hydropower Station as an energy museum. For this purpose, the authority is preparing a master plan by appointing NEA Engineering Company as the consultant in order to develop the station as a tourism site.

The old structures would be renovated and new structures constructed on unoccupied land linking the historic hydropower station with tourism, according to the NEA. 

Different structures including a park, a restaurant, shops, zipline, picnic spot, library and children's park would be constructed on the land of the station's reservoir and powerhouse area located at Dakshinkali Municipality in the Kathmandu Valley. 

It is estimated that it will cost around Rs 1 billion for the implementation of the master plan prepared by the consultant. The station has 324 ropanis of land under its ownership. Forty-six ropanis of land of the reservoir area and around 146 ropanis of land of the powerhouse area will be used for the construction of the tourism related infrastructure.

Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, Shakti Bahadur Basnet, who arrived in Pharping to participate in sapling plantation programme organized on Monday on the premises of Pharping Hydropower Station to mark the 38th anniversary of NEA, was briefed about the master plan.

Minister Basnet, Energy Secretary Dinesh Kumar Ghimire, NEA Managing Director Kulman Ghising, among others, observed the condition of different structures including the powerhouse of the country’s first hydropower project.