Nepal plans to import as much as 1.1 GW of electricity from India in the upcoming dry season to cover peak domestic demand, after flash floods, landslides and heavy monsoon rains harmed hydropower projects and temporarily cut the country's generation capacity, local media reported on September 29.

The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) is drawing up a work plan for the dry period from December to May 2027, when output from the country's run-of-the-river hydropower projects falls sharply and demand climbs, especially in late winter and spring months.

Rajan Dhakal, an NEA spokesperson, said that while some power would need to be imported from India after November, demand would peak between February and May.

Dhakal noted that Nepal now has about 3.74 GW of generation capacity in operation. The country's power sector, however, has taken serious damage from a series of weather-related disasters in recent months.

The August 26 Bhotekoshi flash floods damaged several hydropower plants and related infrastructure, causing a loss of about 450 MW of generation capacity. Heavy monsoon rainfall over September 24-27 then damaged the 190 MW Kaligandaki hydropower project.

Dhakal said the damage from the bhotekoshi floods and the recent heavy rainfall together led to a loss of about 640 MW of generation capacity.

The planned imports are expected to help the NEA keep supply and demand in balance during the coming winter and the peak demand period from February to May.

Despite the damage to its hydropower plants, Nepal is currently exporting between 600 MW and 700 MW of electricity to India, the NEA spokesperson said.

In recent years, the Himalayan nation has increasingly relied on cross-border power trade to export surplus electricity during the wet monsoon months, when its hydropower plants produce more power, and to import electricity during the dry season when domestic generation drops.

Dhakal said the NEA expected some hydropower projects hit by the Bhotekoshi floods to restart generation after maintenance work, with about 160 MW expected to be restored by February.

He said the 190-MW Kaligandaki project was also expected to resume generation within a couple of months, adding that the resumption of the damaged projects would ease pressure on electricity supplies during the dry season.

India and Nepal have expanded cross-border electricity trade in recent years, with New Delhi allowing Kathmandu to sell its surplus power in its energy market.