Monday, March 26, 2012

West Seti and intellectual servitidue

March 26, 2012
Bihari Shrestha
Kathmandu Nepal



Bihari Krishna jee

It definitely is true that the signing of MoU lacks transparency. However, this isn’t first time. NC and UML have signed many a MoUs without any transparency. The mitigating factor in the case of this MoU is the fact that the project will be built not only for electrification in Nepal, but also to avail power for industrialization of Nepal.



If NC and UML have no ill intention and are for transparency then they should amend Section 35 of Electricity Act 1992 instead of trying to brow beat present government just for emulating their own modus operandi.

In the instance of West Seti, lack of transparency doesn’t matter as Nepal’s interest will be served by being able to buy power at lowest possible price and we already have a benchmark established by the MoU signed between SMEC and PTC India which is US 4.95 ¢/unit. The avoided cost of peak-in power form a storage project is around Rs 30/unit for diesel plant (generation from no other source of energy is comparable to peak-in power from storage project). Therefore, we need to put pressure on GoN to ensure that they don’t agree to buy West Seti power for more than the benchmark level.
This could also be a pro-India move as if these people are suffering from intellectual servitude, because India will now be deprived from much needed and cheap peak-in power.

There is no gainsaying talking about money. Because, there is simply no guarantee that Maoists have refrained from taking money, knowing them and if the people complaining do have inside information, then they may be doing so out of sheer jealousy.
For a Nepali what is most important is to ensure ample power for not only suppressed economic growth. We need to avail power beyond normal growth to accelerated growth.


With best regards,

Sincerely,


Ratna Sansar Shrestha, FCA
Senior Water Resource Analyst
http://www.ratnasansar.com/


From: Bihari Shrestha [mailto:bks@wlink.com.np]
Sent: Friday, March 16, 2012 0:30
To: Ratna Sansar Shrestha
Subject: Re: West Seti getting dragged into controversy unnecessarily

Dear Ratna Sansarjee,

The NC and UML in particular are complaining about lack of transparency in reaching this deal. Is that an excuse for their pro-India move? What do you think? Or is it that, they are dong som "tang ladaune" for some money which, they probably think, the Maoists have made in a large quantity.

Regards

Bihari

----- Original Message -----

From: Ratna Sansar Shrestha
To: Ratna Sansar Shrestha
Sent: Thursday, March 15, 2012 6:55 AM
Subject: West Seti getting dragged into controversy unnecessarily


Dear Colleague
West Seti is getting dragged into controversy again. However, this time it is for different/wrong reasons.

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