Kathmandu, Oct 5: India and Nepal have signed a landmark Business-to-Business (B2B) Framework Agreement for the development of critical petroleum infrastructure in Nepal, which includes the construction of a 50-kilometer petroleum pipeline from Siliguri in India to Charaali, Jhapa in Nepal.
The agreement was signed by Dr. Chandika Prasad Bhatta, Executive Director of Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC), and Senthil Kumar, Director of Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) Limited, during a program today, as reported by The Himalayan Times. The event was also attended by Indian Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry Secretary, Pankaj Jain, and IOC Chair, V. Satish Kumar.
Describing the agreement as a significant step in strengthening the energy partnership between the two nations, IOC emphasized the importance of the project in ensuring energy security for Nepal.
Alongside the pipeline, a state-of-the-art Smart Greenfield Terminal with a storage capacity of 18,900 kiloliters will be developed at Charaali. This project is part of a larger initiative under which India will provide a grant for a 62-kilometer petroleum pipeline extending from Amlekhgunj to Lothar in Chitwan. At Lothar, NOC will construct another Smart Greenfield Terminal with a massive 91,900-kiloliter capacity, with technical support from the Indian government.
The combined cost of these projects is estimated to be Rs 15 billion.
The initial Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for these projects was signed during former Nepali Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal’s visit to India in May-June 2023, signaling a deepening collaboration between the two countries in the energy sector.
