Financial Closure Achieved for Sanibheri Hydropower Project

Kathmandu – The financial closure of the 44.52 MW Sanibheri Hydropower Project, being developed by Expert Hydro Investment Company, has been completed. The financing arrangement is being led by Citizens Bank International Limited with participation from several other commercial banks.

Bank Investments

As per the agreement, Citizens Bank will invest NPR 2.5 billion, Nabil Bank NPR 1.5 billion, Nepal Investment Mega Bank NPR 1.2 billion, while Sanima Bank and Siddhartha Bank will each invest NPR 1 billion.

Agreement Signing

The bilateral agreement was signed on Monday by Santosh Raj Nepal, Managing Director of Expert Hydro Investment, and Ganesh Raj Pokharel, CEO of Citizens Bank International.

Project Cost and Structure

The total project cost is estimated at NPR 9.6 billion, of which 25% will be financed through equity and 75% through loans, according to MD Nepal.

Location and Timeline

The project will be built in Putha Uttarganga Rural Municipality–7 and 14 of Rukum East. Construction is expected to be completed within 42 months.

Power Production and Sales

Being a run-of-the-river type project, Sanibheri is expected to generate 283.37 GWh of electricity annually. The generated power will be connected to the Bafikot substation.

The company has already signed a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) on 11 July 2023 (Asar 27, 2080 BS).