– Ramesh Lamsal
Kathmandu, October 6 : The government’s decision to exempt VAT in the import of iron or steel sheet used in making Penstock Pipe to be used in hydropower projects has brought cheer to the entrepreneurs in the country. The iron or steel sheet are used in making Penstock Pipes that are used in the hydropower projects for tunnel. Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Barshaman Pun has welcomed this decision of the government. The entrepreneurs who had invested in the hydropower projects and were mulling to invest in the hydropower projects have been elated too.
The energy entrepreneurs associated with the Independent Power Producers Association, Nepal (IPPAN) have invested in the hydropower projects likely to generate over 3,000 megawatt of electricity put together. Likewise, those projects preparing to ink power purchase agreement with the Nepal Electricity Authority would generate around 6,000 megawatt of electricity. The state-owned hydropower projects were also under construction with a target to produce around 1,000 megawatt of electricity .
IPPAN President Krishna Acharya said that the energy entrepreneurs had also demanded with the government to consider exemption of VAT or any other charges in the iron and steel sheeted used in the hydropower projects. Although the budget for the current fiscal year 2020/21 did not incorporate these things, we are happy that the government decided to exempt VAT in the iron or steel sheet used in Penstock Pipe for hydropower projects.
He said the government’s latest decision has provided relief to the energy entrepreneurs to some extent and expressed the belief that this move would help in fulfilling the government’s target of producing 15 thousand megawatts power in 10 years. Minister Pun had announced during discussions on the Appropriation Bill in the parliament on June 9 that the customs duty on the steel plates used in hydroelectricity projects would be revised. The government has also reduced the tax on electric vehicles that it had increased lately. This has further encouraged the people who want to use the electric vehicles. A meeting of the Council of Ministers on October 1 had decided to decrease the excise duty on electric vehicles.
The entrepreneurs had been complaining about the increment in excise duty effected in the budget statement of the current fiscal year. Traders and entrepreneurs say that the price of electric vehicles has almost doubled with the increment in excise duty and nearly over 500 electric vehicles are stuck at the customs point due to the increased tax. Meanwhile, the government has prepared to operate nearly 300 electric buses in the Kathmandu Valley. Similarly, the Bagmati State government has brought the policy of promoting electric vehicles in the province.RSS
