A 'breakthrough' has been achieved in the first tunnel of the Kaveli-3 hydropower project, with a capacity of 22 megawatts, currently under construction in Sirijanga Rural Municipality of Taplejung.

Meghnath Dhungana, the site in charge of the company, said that there was a breakthrough in the 182.10-meter-long tunnel of the Kaveli-3 hydroelectric power plant, promoted by Kaveli Hydropower Company Limited.

He mentioned that the construction of the tunnel, which began on May 24, will connect from the inlet to Audit-2. The estimated cost of the project, with a capacity of 21.93 megawatts, is Rs 4.3 billion, of which the loan investment from banks will be Rs 3.21 billion.

For the implementation of the plan, water will be transported to the powerhouse through a 5,500-meter tunnel from the dam. Two turbines will be installed in the powerhouse, and electricity will be produced through two generators of three phases connected to the turbine. The project is expected to generate 130.26 gigawatt-hours of electricity annually.

The generated electricity will be connected to the Amarpur substation of Nepal Electricity Authority in Panchthar, which is 18.35 kilometers away. Seventy percent of the total project cost will be debt investment, and 30 percent will be equity investment. Electricity will be produced using the water from the Kaveli River flowing through Sirijanga Rural Municipality.