Continuous rainfall since Friday has caused massive damage to hydropower projects across Nepal. According to the Independent Power Producers’ Association of Nepal (IPPAN), 18 projects have been affected by floods and landslides. Out of these, 13 operating projects have completely stopped power generation, while 5 under-construction projects have also suffered serious losses.
Stock market-linked projects face big loss
IPPAN stated that 11 of the damaged projects belong to 9 hydropower companies listed on the Nepal Stock Exchange. These include Himal Dolakha Hydropower, Sanima Mai Hydropower, Supermai Hydropower, Sagarmatha Hydropower, Maikhola Hydropower, Sanvi Energy, Asian Hydropower, Samling Power, and Panchakanya Mai Hydropower.
Full list of affected projects
The damaged sites include Maikhola and Maikhola Cascade of Himal Dolakha, Maikhola and Maikhola Cascade of Sanima Mai, Super Mai of Supermai Hydropower, Super Mai-A of Sagarmatha Hydropower, Super Mai-A Cascade of Maikhola Hydropower, Jogmai Khola and Jogmai Cascade of Sanvi Energy, Tallo Jogmai of Asian Hydropower, Maibeni of Samling Power, and Upper Mai Khola of Panchakanya Mai.
Share prices and broader impact
Shares of these companies currently range between Rs 186 and Rs 889. A total of 94 hydropower companies are listed on NEPSE. IPPAN said that most of the affected projects are located in Ilam, Panchthar, and Sindhupalchok districts.
Ilam suffers the most damage
In Ilam alone, several major projects including Super Mai, Maikhola, Super Mai-A, Jogmai Khola, Tallo Jogmai, Maibeni, and Upper Mai Khola have been heavily damaged. Similarly, in Panchthar and Sindhupalchok, projects like Sabha Khola-B, Hewakhola, Siddhikhola, Brahmayani, and Upper Brahmayani have also been hit hard.
Different views on the real situation
While Energy Minister Kulman Ghising said in a press conference that only two hydropower projects were damaged, private sector representatives strongly disagreed. They claimed that at least 13 projects have completely shut down due to the disaster, showing a large gap between official reports and ground reality.
