Nepal is striving to develop its hydro power system and seeking to hasten its development pace into a hydro power nation.

A two-day summit, organized by Independent Power Producers' Association Nepal (IPPAN)), is to be held in Kathmandu on Aug. 26- 27 to discuss the issue.

President of IPPAN Dr. Subarna Shrestha, said the summit will discuss projects to develop hydro power and how to get domestic and overseas investment.

Participants of the summit will also review case studies from neighboring countries on the role of the government and the effect of changing political situations on the development of hydro power.

Shrestha added that all their efforts would be concentrated in making the country a hydro power nation that will eventually solve the power crisis that has crippled the country of late.

Nepal has managed to generate only 660 megawatt (MW) of electricity, despite having the potential to produce at least 40, 000 MW of electricity from the fast flowing white-water rivers that originates from the Himalayas.

Acute power shortage has resulted in low economic growth and left adverse effects on the daily life of the people.

On average, Nepal reels under five hours of power cuts every day. The situation gets worse during the dry season, when there is more than 14 hours of power cuts every day.

Attracting more investments from the private companies is another important topic of the summit.

Interests from foreign investors, especially from China and India, has been mounting every day but unfavorable political situations have discouraged such potential investors.

So the summit also aims to convince domestic and foreign investors to work in Nepal, added Shrestha.

The Nepal Investment Board and the association of Nepalese living abroad are the other major stake holders in the summit. According to organizer, the summit has so far received confirmations from more than 200 hydro power companies from Nepal and abroad for their participation. Endi

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