Kathmandu — The construction of the headrace tunnel for the 53.5-megawatt Upper Myagdi-1 Hydropower Project has officially commenced, with tunnel excavation underway from the outlet site in Bharbang, Malika Rural Municipality-7, where the project’s powerhouse will be located.

Previously, tunnel excavation had already begun on both flanks of the dam site—Khamla and Chhahari—in Dhawalagiri Rural Municipality-4. According to Project Chief Jyoti Kumar KC, the newly started tunnel and the previously launched audit-side tunnel will span a total of 1,865 meters. In total, the project will include the construction of a 5.7-kilometer-long headrace tunnel connecting the dam to the powerhouse.

Promoted by Myagdi Hydro Power Limited, the project involves building a 15-meter-high and 40-meter-long diversion dam at Khamla to divert water from the Myagdi River into the tunnel system.

The civil construction contract was awarded to Luna Builders and Contractors, which signed the agreement on Chaitra 19, 2080 BS and began mobilization on Baisakh 28, 2081 BS. The contractor has deployed sufficient labor, construction materials, and equipment to accelerate progress, according to Project Chief KC.

So far, the project has achieved key milestones:

• 198.90 meters of the Chhahari audit tunnel have been excavated.

• 76.54 meters of the tunnel from the dam side have been completed.

• An additional 1,270.67 meters of the main tunnel from the audit side have also been constructed.

• Overall, around 20% physical progress has been made at the dam site.

The hydropower plant, with a total investment of Rs. 11.2327 billion, is being developed with financial leadership from Sanima Bank. The project is being funded through a consortium of six banks, equity from promoter companies, and public shares.

The powerhouse, located in Bharbang, Malika-7, will connect to the national grid via a 1.5-kilometer 132 kV transmission line. Electricity generated—an average of 315.01 gigawatt-hours annually—will be fed into the central grid through the 132 kV substation being constructed by the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) in Dadakhet, Malika-7.

The project is progressing with the goal of starting electricity generation by Falgun 2083 BS.

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📰 Source: UrjaSanchar.com