New Delhi, April 2 : India and Nepal unveiled a vision statement on cooperation in the power sector, including increased involvement of Indian companies in Nepal’s hydropower sector, purchase of surplus power by India and pushing ahead with the 6,480 MW Pancheshwar Multipurpose Project on the Mahakali River. The vision document said that Based on their respective national policies and climate-change commitments, they agreed to make renewable energy production, hydropower in particular, a cornerstone of their energy partnership. They also agreed to expand such cooperation to include their partner countries under the Bangladesh-Bhutan-India-Nepal framework. Nepal invited Indian companies to invest in the development, construction and operation of viable renewable power projects, including in the Hydropower sector in Nepal, including storage-type projects, including through mutually beneficial partnerships. On the Pancheshwar Multipurpose project, the two leaders directed their concerned officials to expedite the bilateral discussions towards early finalization of the project’s Detailed Project Report. In his media statement, PM Modi said: “Our joint vision statement on power cooperation will form the blueprint of our future cooperation. We have decided to push ahead with the Pancheshwar project, which will prove a game changer for the region. We have also agreed on increased participation by Indian companies in Nepal’s hydropower development projects. “It is a matter of happiness that Nepal is going to sell its surplus power to India. This will contribute to Nepal’s economic progress.” The Pancheshwar Multipurpose Project (PMP) is a bi-national hydropower project to be developed in Mahakali River bordering Nepal and India. The project is to straddle Uttarakhand in India and the Far Western Development Region of Nepal. Development of the project is covered under integrated Mahakali Treaty signed between Nepal and India according to which, equal sizes of underground power house i.e. of 3240MV will be constructed on each side of Mahakali river in India and Nepal. The project also offers benefit of regulated water for irrigation to a vast area of agricultural land both in Nepal and India along with benefit of flood control at downstream. India and Nepal had signed a Treaty known as Mahakali Treaty in February 1996, however, both sides failed to finalise a detailed project report. The last joint meeting of expert groups between two countries was held in Kathmandu in February 2019. The dam site of the Pancheshwar Multipurpose Project was identified in 1956 by the Indian side. According to the 1971 report, it has the capacity of generating 1,000 megawatt electricity. The 1991 study showed that its total production would be 6,480 megawatts provided that a 315-metre high dam is constructed. RN