After years of delay, the World Bank has agreed to extend Nepal a $75.4 million loan for the development of power sector, negotiators said.

The Bank and Nepal signed a memorandum of understanding in Washington for funding the Power Development Project (PDP) this month during a visit of a seven-member Nepali delegation led by Finance Secretary Bhanu Prasad Acharya.

The Bank’s Board meeting on May 23 has to approve the loan. World Bank participation in the power sector was stalled after its sudden withdrawal from the mega Arun III in 1995.