Kulekhani II · Nepal Energy Wiki

32 MW · operating · on the Kulekhani · in Makawanpur district.

Summary

Kulekhani II is the 32 MW middle plant in Nepal's only operating reservoir-fed hydropower cascade. The page tracks its dependence on Kulekhani I releases, supplementary inflows, FY 2081/82 performance, and aging-infrastructure role.

Specifications

Parameter	Value
Capacity	32 MW
Status	Operating
Registry licence	Operation
River	Kulekhani
District	Makawanpur
Province	Bagmati Pradesh

Sources

NEA Annual Report FY 2024/25

Specifications (NEA FY 2081/82)

Kulekhani II is a 32 MW cascade plant commissioned in 1986 — the second link in Nepal's only operating reservoir hydropower system. It uses tailrace discharge from Kulekhani I (60 MW, reservoir), supplemented by flow from the Mandu River and the Rapti Pumping Station, to generate peaking power when the central grid needs it most.

Parameter	Value
Type	Cascade (reservoir-fed)
Commissioning	1986
Design generation	104.6 GWh/yr
FY 2081/82 generation	74.9 GWh
FY 2081/82 vs target	89%
Year-over-year change	+56%
Cumulative lifetime generation	2,436.5 GWh
Supplementary sources	Mandu River intake, Rapti Pumping Station
Location	Makwanpur District

Each year, the Mandu intake is cleaned post-monsoon and the Rapti Pumping Station is maintained — operated as needed during the dry season to augment generation. In FY 2081/82, KL2 completed 7.2 kV VCB switchgear work, transformer oil filtration, replacement of a damaged 600 mm² conductor, and civil works at both intakes.

The Cascade's Middle Link

The Kulekhani system operates as a sequential cascade: KL1 releases from the reservoir, KL2 generates from the tailrace plus supplementary sources, and KL3 (14 MW) uses the regulated flow from KL2 combined with Khani Khola natural flow. The system is coherent — KL1's dispatch decisions determine what KL2 and KL3 receive.

KL2's 56% year-over-year increase mirrors KL1's 64.5% rise — both driven by the same monsoon-filling event. This coordination makes the cascade efficient when water is abundant but also concentrated: in a drought year, the entire cascade contracts together, since the bottleneck is reservoir fill, not turbine capacity at any single plant.

The combined cascade design is 356.5 GWh/yr (KL1: 211 + KL2: 104.6 + KL3: 40.85). FY 2081/82 combined actual: 279.8 GWh — 78.5% of design. This is the hydrology-dependence in practice. The reservoir allows seasonal shifting but cannot create water; when the monsoon underperforms, the cascade underperforms as a unit.

Aging Infrastructure in a Critical Role

At 39 years old (commissioned 1986), Kulekhani II is among the oldest NEA plants still in regular service. The FY 2081/82 maintenance scope — VCB switchgear replacement, conductor repair, transformer oil filtration — reflects a plant in its fourth decade where electrical infrastructure becomes the primary maintenance driver.

The cascade's strategic importance magnifies the aging concern. If KL1 requires a major dam or turbine overhaul, KL2's generation suspends automatically — it has no independent water source. Both plants are vintage, both have NEA as sole owner/operator, and both are essential to the dry-season grid. There is no redundancy. See Storage Deficit.

Limitations & Controversies

Kulekhani II's performance cannot be evaluated independently of Kulekhani I reservoir operation. The page relies on NEA annual-report operating data and does not separately verify plant-level outage history, remaining equipment life, Rapti/Mandu supplementary-flow reliability, or rehabilitation needs.