Kulekhani Dam

The Kulekhani Dam is a rock-fill dam on the Kulekhani River near Kulekhani in Makwanpur District of Narayani Zone, Nepal. The primary purpose of the dam is hydroelectric power generation and it supports the 60 MW Kulekhani I and 32 MW Kulekhani II Hydropower Stations. Construction began in 1977 and Kulekhani I was commissioned in 1982. Kulekhani II was commissioned in 1986 and a third power station, the 14 MW Kulekhani III was expected to be commissioned in May 2015 but is delayed to issues with the builder. The US$117.84 million project received funding from the World Bank, Kuwait Fund, UNDP, Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund and OPEC Fund. It is owned by Nepal Electricity Authority.The 114m tall dam creates a reservoir called Indra Sarobar which stores 85300000m3 of water. From the reservoir, water is sent to the Kulekhani I Hydropower Station via a 5.8km headrace tunnel to a gate house which controls the flow of water to the power station. From the gate house water travels down a 1340m long penstock where it reaches the underground power station. It contains two 30 MW Pelton turbine-generators. The difference in elevation between the reservoir and the power station affords a net hydraulic head of 550m. Water discharged from the power station then enters a series of tunnels and diversions where it reaches the Kulekhani II Hydropower Station which is also located underground and contains two 16 MW Francis turbine-generators. The elevation difference between the reservoir and the power station affords a net hydraulic head of 284.1m. The dam and reservoir are in the Bagmati River basin while the power stations are in the Rapti River basin.