3 min readNew DelhiAug 28, 2026 04:22 AM IST
A hydropower plant that supplies electricity to India was among the power plants hit by Wednesday’s flash flood in Nepal. Authorities were assessing the extent of damage to scores of power plants which cater to the bulk of Nepal’s electricity needs.
A senior Indian government official told The Indian Express Thursday that Nepal slashed its power supply to India by half, from around 800 megawatts (MW) to at least 400 MW. The 14-MW Devighat hydropower plant that supplies power to India was among the plants affected by the floods, the official said. India imports electricity from multiple hydroelectric power plants in Nepal.
According to data from Grid India, India imported 963.4 MW from Nepal at the day’s peak on August 26 when the flash flood struck.
Two other hydroelectric plants, Chilime and Trisuli, which supply electricity to Bangladesh, have also been affected.
Nepal’s Energy Ministry, in a statement, said that around 13 hydroelectric power plants and a solar plant were affected due to the floods.
The floods, triggered by a collapsing glacier in the Himalayan region between Nepal and Tibet, affected nearly 359 MW of capacity, mostly hydro power, the Energy Ministry’s statement said.
People try to enter a safer place after flash floods, at the Devighat in Bidur, Nuwakot, Nepal, Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026. The death toll from the devastating flash floods surged to 359 on Thursday. (PTI Photo)
Queries sent to the Ministry of Power and Grid India did not elicit a response.
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According to the Nepal government, operational power plants with total capacity of 236 MW and three under-construction major hydropower projects with total capacity of 342.42 MW have been affected in Rasuwa district.
The affected projects include Upper Trishuli-1 (216 MW), Rasuwagadhi (111 MW), Rasuwa Bhotekoshi (120 MW), Sanjen Khola (78 MW), Upper Mailung A (6.42 MW), Mailung Khola (5 MW), Laidang Khola (20 MW), and Chilime (22 MW).
In Nuwakot district, four operational power plants with a total capacity of 123 MW and two under-construction power projects with a total capacity of 52.6 MW have been affected.
Nepal army personnel amid a rescue and search operation after flash floods, at the Army Training Centre in Nuwakot, Nepal, Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026. The death toll from the devastating flash floods surged to 359 on Thursday. (PTI Photo)
These projects include the Trishuli Hydropower Project (24 MW), Devighat Hydropower Project (14.1 MW), Upper Trishuli-3A (60 MW), Upper Trishuli-3B (37 MW), Middle Trishuli Ganga (15.6 MW), and a 25 MW capacity solar project.
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Hydropower accounts for the bulk of Nepal’s total installed electricity generation capacity of around 4,300 MW.
Electricity trade between Nepal and India is seasonal, with Nepal exporting surplus power to India during the monsoon and importing electricity during the dry winter months when domestic hydropower generation declines.