Supply of Turkmen electric power to Tajikistan via Afghanistan deemed possible
By Aynur Jafarova
Supply of electric power from Turkmenistan to Tajikistan through the Afghan territory is quite possible, Tajik media reported with reference to Tajikistan's state energy company Barki Tojik.
Construction of a transmission line from Turkmenistan to Afghanistan is currently underway, and it is possible to connect it to the 220 KV Sangtuda-Puli Khumri transmission line. However, this requires funding, Tajik news agency Asia-Plus quoted deputy chairman of Barki Tojik Abdullah Kurbonov as saying.
According to him, so far, Tajikistan is not in a position to finance the construction of this line.
Joining the 500-kV transmission line Mary (Turkmenistan) - Andkhoy (Afghanistan) to the 220-kV transmission line Sangtuda (Tajikistan) - Puli Khumri (Afghanistan) will make the supply of electricity to Tajikistan quite possible, he said.
The existing hydro-power facilities of Tajikistan don't meet the country's demand and it has to import hydrocarbons from neighboring countries. The cost of Uzbek natural gas imported by Tajikistan has been increasing in recent years.
According to Tajik media, Tajikistan faces shortages in winter when rural Tajik consumers receive electricity on average five to seven hours per day. Due to the lack of energy in the country, many enterprises work only seasonally due to the energy deficit in fall.
Until 2009, Tajikistan was receiving additional electricity from Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan in winter. However, after Uzbekistan withdrew from the unified energy system of Central Asia, imports of electricity from Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan in winter became impossible.
The existing transport infrastructure allows Ashgabat to export electricity to Turkey, Afghanistan, Iran and greater Central Asia as well. According to Donya-e-Eqtesad News, the country plans to become one of the largest exporters of electric power in the region by 2020.
In May, Turkmenistan's Energy and Industry Ministry said that Turkmenistan has approved the concept of development of the power industry in the country for 2013-2020 with an investment of over $5 billion.
The aim of the concept is to meet the demand of the industrial and agricultural sector of Turkmenistan, to provide environmental safety, to create new jobs and to increase the volume of electric power exports.
The energy policy of the country must not only clearly define priorities of the development of the domestic energy sector in the coming years, but should also outline concrete steps towards integration into the global energy system, Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov believes.