Bhutan’s public debt is expected to increase to a total of Nu 166bn by the end of June, according to projections by the Finance Committee of the National Assembly.
The committee’s debt forecast is based on its review of the National Budget Report.
Finance Minister Namgay Dorji explained that the public debt is classified into two different types: hydropower and non-hydropower. The minister attributed the debt growth to the ongoing construction of hydropower projects such as the Punatshangchhu I and II and the Mangdechhu.
The Finance Committee’s Chairperson, MP Karma Tenzin, said hydropower debt accounts for about 80 percent of the country’s total external debt. The remaining 23 percent is non-hydro debt.
The committee, however, said there is no risk of debt default and debt stress because hydropower debts are self-liquidating.
