{"id":49283,"date":"2026-06-10T18:30:35","date_gmt":"2026-06-10T12:45:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nepalsamaj.com\/en\/?p=49283"},"modified":"2026-06-10T18:30:35","modified_gmt":"2026-06-10T12:45:35","slug":"mca-nepal-breaks-ground-on-substations-and-297-kilometer-transmission-line","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nepalsamaj.com\/en\/mca-nepal-breaks-ground-on-substations-and-297-kilometer-transmission-line\/","title":{"rendered":"MCA-Nepal breaks ground on substations and 297-kilometer transmission line"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Ratmate (Nuwakot), June 10: Millennium Challenge Account Nepal (MCA-Nepal) today formally broke ground on the Ratmate Substation, the New Damauli Substation, and the 297km transmission line under the Electricity Transmission Project of the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Nepal Compact.<\/p>\n

This historic partnership\u2014combining a $550 million grant from the United States and a $197 million investment from the Government of Nepal\u2014is building world-class electricity transmission infrastructure and upgrading vital road networks.
\nThe groundbreaking ceremony at the Ratmate Substation site in Nuwakot brought together senior officials of the government, representatives from MCC and the U.S. Embassy, development partners, contractors, local stakeholders, media and community leaders.<\/p>\n

Jointly funded by the Governments of Nepal and the United States through the MCC Nepal Compact, the Electricity Transmission Project will construct high-capacity 400kV substations and 315km of transmission lines.
\nThe infrastructure will strengthen Nepal\u2019s national electricity grid, ease transmission bottlenecks, improve electricity reliability for households and businesses, and support greater participation of Nepal in regional electricity markets.
\nThe 297km transmission line network includes the Ratmate\u2013New Damauli and New Damauli \u2013New Butwal corridors, as well as the Lapsiphedi\u2013Ratmate\u2013New Hetauda section.<\/p>\n

On the occasion, Dr. Ghanshyam Upadhyaya, the Secretary of the Ministry of Finance and MCA-Nepal Board Chair shared, \u201cThe Government of Nepal considers this project a critical investment in the country\u2019s economic future.”<\/p>\n

Similarly, \u201cStrengthening electricity transmission infrastructure is essential to ensuring energy security, promoting investment and industrial growth, and maximizing the benefits of Nepal\u2019s energy potential.\u201d U.S. Charg\u00e9 d\u2019Affaires Scott Urbom reaffirmed the United States\u2019 longstanding partnership with Nepal and its commitment to the MCC Nepal Compact.
\n\u201cThrough this Compact, we are building the backbone of Nepal’s energy future. Reliable power will flow across the country and beyond its borders. For families, this means lights that stay on. For factories and farms, it means steady energy to drive production. For Nepali businesses, it unlocks new horizons for growth,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Likewise, MCC Resident Country Director Diane Francisco emphasized the long-term significance for Nepal\u2019s economic growth and regional energy integration.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese investments will help Nepal unlock the full potential of its energy sector by strengthening the transmission system needed to deliver reliable electricity to households, businesses, and industries. MCC is proud to partner with Nepal on this transformative infrastructure initiative,\u201d she opined.<\/p>\n

Addressing the ceremony, Acting Managing Director at Nepal Electricity Authority, Dirghayu Kumar Shrestha, mentioned, “The infrastructure being constructed under the MCC Nepal Compact is not a standalone system. It is an important addition to Nepal’s national transmission network.”<\/p>\n

MCA-Nepal Executive Director Khadga Bahadur Bisht viewed, \u201cToday marks a major milestone in Nepal\u2019s energy infrastructure development. This stronger, more reliable, and future-ready electricity transmission network will benefit generations of Nepalis and position Nepal as a key player in regional energy markets.\u201d<\/p>\n

He noted that the project will ease transmission bottlenecks and enhance connectivity in Nepal and in the region.
\nFour contractors are executing the work: Techno Electric and Engineering Company Ltd., India, is carrying out the construction of the Ratmate and New Damauli substations; Ashish\u2013 Bozlar JV is constructing the 117km Lapsiphedi\u2013Ratmate\u2013New Hetauda transmission line section; and Angelique\u2013Skipper JV and Waiba\u2013Salasar JV are undertaking the construction of the Ratmate\u2013New Damauli and New Damauli\u2013New Butwal transmission line sections, respectively.
\nEach section spans approximately 90 kilometers. Once completed, the Ratmate and New Damauli substations will rank among Nepal\u2019s largest high-voltage substations. Together with the transmission lines, the infrastructure will strengthen Nepal\u2019s power transmission network and support long-term energy demand and economic growth.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ratmate (Nuwakot), June 10: Millennium Challenge Account Nepal (MCA-Nepal) today formally broke ground on the Ratmate Substation, the New Damauli Substation, and the 297km transmission line under the Electricity Transmission Project of the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Nepal Compact. This historic partnership\u2014combining a $550 million grant from the United States and a $197 million investment […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":49284,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,16,11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-49283","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-main-news","category-economy","category-national"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nepalsamaj.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49283"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nepalsamaj.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nepalsamaj.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nepalsamaj.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nepalsamaj.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49283"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/nepalsamaj.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49283\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":49285,"href":"https:\/\/nepalsamaj.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49283\/revisions\/49285"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nepalsamaj.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/49284"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nepalsamaj.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49283"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nepalsamaj.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49283"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nepalsamaj.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49283"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}