The Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) has urged the government to immediately cut down the load shedding hours to stop industrial production from shrinking further.

A delegation of representatives of the FNCCI and various other business organisations led by FNCCI second vice-president Kush Kumar Joshi met with Minister of State for Water Resources Gyanendra Karki on Sunday and suggested that the problem of load shedding be addressed immediately. The delegation also suggested for a joint taskforce of the government, Nepal Electricity Authority and the FNCCI to reduce the current 40-hr weekly load shedding.

The delegation told minister Karki that more than 40 percent industries would have to close down if no alternative to the load shedding is found urgently.

Already facing heavy loss that goes well into billions of rupees due to frequent bandhs (shut down strikes) and transportation strikes, the industrial sector would have no choice than to lay off huge industrial workforce, the FNCCI warned.

The businessmen also urged the government to commit to reducing the leakage of electricity by 25 percent, grant permission to the private sector to invest in ‘storage type’ and thermal power plants, take urgent steps to set up a ‘captive power plant’ with a capacity of 50 to 60 MW along the Hetauda-Birgunj corridor and fix seasonal electricity tariff.

They also demanded that the government waive the ‘demand charge’ collected from industries and set up diesel and multi-fuel plants in Hetauda and Biratnagar to supply electricity to industries.

Minister Karki told the delegation that the government had taken seriously their concerns and assured to take steps to solve the power crisis, a press statement issued by the FNCCI said.