India has approved the expedited export of electricity to neighbouring Nepal to help it overcome shortages caused by extensive damage to hydropower infrastructure from devastating floods last month. In a statement on Monday, India’s Ministry of Power said up to 654 megawatts of electricity would be transmitted for 18 hours per day until December 31. It added that in December it would also review the amount of power to be exported from January.
The flooding, triggered on August 26 by a glacial mountain collapse on the China-Nepal border, killed more than 1,400 people in Nepal and Tibet. At least 12 hydropower projects in Nepal were hit, with at least 900 power station workers among the more than 5,500 people still missing in the country. Almost 100 percent of the country’s energy needs were met by hydropower before the floods hit.
Since then, Nepal has been forced to import electricity after years of exporting surplus energy to India. Thousands of displaced people are sheltering in aid centres, with little hope of returning home soon. The United Nations and its partners are appealing for nearly $50m to help survivors.
Nepali officials say at least $5bn is needed for initial rebuilding, adding that the disaster shows how climate change has hit poor countries that did little to cause it. The Himalayas, where Nepal is nestled, are approaching a tipping point as glaciers melt faster than a decade ago, threatening water security as the region approaches “peak water” by mid-century, according to a study released this month.
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