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Data centreNepalEIR-2544

Transformer blast cuts power to Nepal government data centre

June 2023Published 24 Oct 2026Responsible editor: Chief Editor

SignificantElectricalProvisionalNext update 24 Oct
Estimated damageEstimated by the register's adjusterHow? Know the real figure?
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out of service for about •• daysShown in the record →Full estimate
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Companies named in the reporting of this entry (being named is not a finding of fault): National Information Technology Center

What happened

On 20 June 2023 a transformer at the K3 sub-station exploded at about 1.30 pm, according to NITC's statement, cutting mains power to the National Information Technology Center (NITC) data centre at Singhadurbar. Power supply had been fluctuating since the morning, and the data centre had been running on its backup generator. According to NITC, the generator's cable then began to develop faults after prolonged use. From about 7.30 pm the data centre's services were interrupted and it could not operate, so it was shut down.

Websites and online systems hosted there, including sites using the .gov.np domain, were offline for a few hours overnight. Services were restored by 21 June 2023, and NITC apologised for the inconvenience.

Contributing factors

Frequent power cuts since the morning, with the generator run for a long period to carry the load. According to NITC, the generator cable developed faults after prolonged use. The data centre was shut down because of possible risks to equipment once the generator was affected. The source reports the cause as stated by NITC.

Lessons learned

  1. Inspect and load-test backup generators, including their cabling and connections, before extended running is needed, because prolonged use can expose faults.
  2. Set a defined threshold for switching to backup and for a controlled shutdown, so the decision is made before equipment is at risk.
  3. Identify the upstream substation and transformer dependencies of a data centre and plan for a second supply path or early warning of feeder failure.

More lessons on electrical protection and isolation, outages, backup supply and restoration, detection and monitoring, from every incident on the register.

Source

nepalitelecom.com

Published 2026-10-24. Written from public reporting. Descriptive, not investigative. See the data accuracy disclaimer.

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