Hydropower received highest FDI of 32.8 percent in FY 2021/22: NRB

Kathmandu; Nepal’s hydropower sector receives 32.8 percent of the foreign direct investment (FDI) that the country received in the fiscal year 2021/22.

According to a survey conducted by Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB), the sector received the FDI worth Rs 86.81 billion in fiscal year 2021/22. Of the amount, Rs 37.96 billion was injected by Indian investors.

China’s investment was also seen as the highest in hydroelectricity. The NRB’s records show that Nepal received investment of Rs 23.37 billion in electricity production from the northern neighbor.

The sector not only attracted FDI, but also a significant amount in loans from foreign companies, mainly due to the high rate of returns from the energy business. In the fiscal year 2021/22 alone, the foreign firms took away Rs 1.67 billion in repatriation of their profits from hydropower, while foreign firms repatriated a total of Rs 15.67 billion in the review year.

The NRB has come up with the report based on the survey carried out on 231 sample firms. The report shows that 62 percent of the FDI was poured into the industrial sector, including 29.5 percent in manufacturing businesses and 32.8 percent in hydropower businesses.