Nepal’s electricity market has opened to private participation following the issuance of the Open Access Directive 2082 by the Electricity Regulatory Commission. The reform permits private entities to trade electricity using the Nepal Electricity Authority’s transmission network, effectively ending NEA’s long-standing monopoly. The sector is transitioning from a single-buyer system to a competitive multi-buyer, multi-seller model, allowing producers to sell power directly to industrial and commercial consumers. While the move has been welcomed, full implementation will depend on finalizing technical standards, pricing mechanisms, and infrastructure readiness.
