Industry: For investors to benefit from additional 2,600MW that Bhutan will generate by the end of 2018, the government is working with urgency to develop all four industrial estates.

Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay shared this allaying fears among some potential investors that the Jigmeling industrial estate will not be developed because of  security reasons.

Lyonchoen said, “We are working with the sense of urgency to develop all four industrial estates.” “We believe all of them are viable.” The other three industrial estates are Samtse, Motanga and Bongdema.

Latest by early 2019, he said Bhutan would generate another 2,600MW of hydropower from three projects – Punatsangchu I and II and Mangdechu.  Today, the total power generating capacity in the country is 1,800MW.

“When the new hydropower projects start generating power, we better have the industrial estates ready to make use of the clean resources we have,” the prime minister said.

In fact, he said the works on the industrial estates began almost 10 years ago. “There has been absolutely no progress, but we are making more headway in developing all four,” he said.

The biggest industrial estate, Jigmeling has 733 acres of land, which is more than the areas of the other three industrial estates combined. “So its very important to develop Jigmeling.”

For those, who are not sure of investing in Jigmeling, he said they could invest in the other three. The government has already set aside Nu 1B for the development of industrial estates.

Even without the industrial estate in operation, he said Bhutan Hydropower Services Limited at Jigmeling, was functioning without any security issue so far. “Without even the industrial estate they are safe.”

MB Subba