Over 150 years ago, Brian Hudgson, a British-Indian resident at Nepal's Royal Court, noticed that the Palace officials and elites showed more favor towards distant Chinese emperors than their friendly neighbors in British-India.

He refers to them as "barbarians" who fail to grasp their own interests. He claims that British-India is committed to aiding Nepal and its people. Despite shifts in government and politics, the elite in Nepal persist in opposing mutually beneficial agreements with India to harness Nepal's water resources for economic development, labeling them as unpatriotic.

A recent incident involved criticism of an agreement between the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) and Power Trading Corporation (PTC) India, with some claiming it to be anti-national and resulting in a loss of over 450 million rupees for Nepal in power imports during the winter season.

However, the agreement actually benefits Nepal by allowing for cheaper electricity imports. Interestingly, both ultra-nationalist communist leader KP Sharma Oli and his opponents are united in criticizing the agreement as anti-Nepal.

Following a recent visit by Kulman Ghising, Minister of Energy, Water Resources, and Irrigation, and his discussions with Indian ministers and officials, this new agreement was reached, providing benefits for Nepal.

NEA stated that the agreement with Power Trading Corporation (PTC) Nepal will enable Nepal to import electricity from India at a lower cost to meet winter demand. The recent agreement allows for this electricity import, which is essential as Nepal primarily relies on run-of-river hydropower projects for its national electricity system.

During the rainy season, surplus electricity is exported, while in the dry season, Nepal imports electricity from India to meet domestic demand. Last year, Nepal exported 2.38 billion units of electricity and imported 1.68 billion units from India.

NEA emphasized in a press release that certain media reports and social media comments regarding the agreement for winter electricity management are distorted and misleading. The Authority clarified that it has been importing electricity from India through the Day-Ahead and Real-Time markets of the Indian Energy Exchange (IEX) and other power exchange mechanisms.

Due to the increasing electricity demand in recent years, Nepal was permitted to import electricity from India during last year's dry months only during "solar hours" (6 AM to 6 PM) and excluding some evening and night hours.

A similar situation is anticipated in the current fiscal year. To ensure a reliable power supply during the dry season, NEA found it necessary to purchase a certain amount of electricity as a base import, opting for the most suitable and cost-effective option available.

On 13 Shrawan 2082 (around July 28, 2025), NEA invited proposals for electricity purchase through a bilateral agreement from PTC India Ltd. (a company with Indian government investment) and NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam (NVVN), another Indian government entity.

PTC India presented a proposal on 23 Shrawan 2082, offering to supply power at a landed tariff of INR 6.74 per unit (inclusive of transmission, losses, and other charges) for one month, subject to finalizing the agreement by 23 Bhadra 2082. NVVN, on the other hand, proposed a landed tariff of INR 7.70 per unit. However, due to delays in decision-making by the NEA Board of Directors and management at that time, the PTC proposal expired automatically on 23 Bhadra 2082.

Subsequently, NEA requested new proposals. PTC then submitted a revised proposal on 6 Ashoj 2082, offering a landed tariff of INR 6.95 per unit, while NVVN adjusted its rate to INR 7.67 per unit. Therefore, PTC's offer, utilizing the Dhalkebar-Muzaffarpur transmission line, was INR 0.72 per unit cheaper than NVVN's.

The Nepal-India Power Exchange Committee (PEC) has set a take-and-pay rate of INR 8.10 per unit at 132 Kv voltage for electricity purchases until March of next year. Last year, NEA had a deal with NVVN to buy 230 MW of power at INR 7.05 per unit during dry months, but the agreement couldn't be executed due to lack of approval from India’s Designated Authority.

Comparing NVVN’s proposed rate of INR 7.67 per unit, PEC’s rate of INR 8.10 per unit, last year’s NVVN rate of INR 7.05 per unit, and last year’s maximum real-time market rate of INR 10 per unit (with limited power availability at that price), PTC’s current proposal of INR 6.95 per unit was the most competitive and cost-effective.

Therefore, NEA’s Board of Directors, in a meeting on 10 Ashoj 2082 (26 September), decided to purchase 80 MW of electricity through the 132 Kv Bihar-Nepal transmission line and 100 MW through the Dhalkebar-Muzaffarpur transmission line in round-the-clock (RTC) mode from PTC India, starting from January to May 2026.

This agreement has also received approval from the Electricity Regulatory Commission. It has been forwarded to the Indian Designated Authority for concurrence and will be implemented upon their approval.

NEA clarifies that neither the current Board of Directors nor the management has made any decisions that would harm the institution or the nation. The misinformation being spread in the media targeting Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Minister, Physical Infrastructure and Transport and Urban Development Minister, NEA Board Chairman Kulman Ghising, and NEA Executive Director Manoj Silwal seems to be a deliberate attempt to tarnish their reputation. NEA urges everyone not to be misled by such false propaganda.

The Ministry of Energy, Water Resources, and Irrigation has also refuted recent news reports about Nepal-India electricity trade as false and baseless.

The Ministry has denied the claims made in certain media outlets that Nepal will bear the sole responsibility for paying the transmission line charge for 25 years to connect with India, and that Nepal will have to pay 8 to 10 billion rupees to India even if India does not purchase any electricity from Nepal in the next five years. The Ministry has expressed serious concern over these reports.

The Ministry has taken serious note of the news published in some media outlets alleging that Nepal will have to bear the transmission line charge alone for 25 years to connect with India, and that even if India does not buy any electricity from Nepal in the next five years, Nepal will still have to pay 8 to 10 billion rupees to India.

Despite the positive aspects of the agreement, there are certain groups who seize the opportunity to criticize India, labeling Nepalese authorities and political leaders as anti-national and corrupt. The current trend is very nationalistic with negative consequences for Nepal.