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Azernews, 14 February 2018

By Kamila Aliyeva

Tajikistan may resume supplies of electricity to Uzbekistan from March 2018.

The total export of Tajik electricity to the neighboring country will amount to at least 1.5 billion kilowatt hours per year, Central Asian media outlets reported.

To date, Dushanbe and Tashkent are discussing the terms of supply of Tajik electricity to the Uzbek market, including prices.

The final decision on this issue will be taken during the state visit of Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to Tajikistan scheduled for early March.

Earlier, Tajik Minister of Energy and Water Resources Usmonali Usmonzoda stated that Tajikistan may begin supplying electricity to Uzbekistan in the summer of 2018.

He then noted that following the withdrawal of Tajikistan from the Central Asian unified energy system in November 2009, the energy systems of Tajikistan and Uzbekistan underwent significant changes.

“After the withdrawal of our country from the unified energy system, Tajikistan established the supply of its own electricity to the north of the country, which previously used Uzbek and Kyrgyz electricity. Uzbekistan started to provide its Southern territories, which previously consumed Tajik electricity, itself,” the minister said.

Both Tajikistan and Uzbekistan are determined to restore the regional energy system, according to the official.

“For this, Uzbekistan has to restore 60 kilometers of power lines connecting the south of the country with Tajikistan; it is necessary to implement a project of relay protection and automation,” Usmonzoda said.

Over 18 billion kilowatt hours of electricity, which allowed the country to provide electricity without imposing a limit, were produced in Tajikistan in 2017, according to the minister.

Previously, Central Asia had a unified energy system. It included 83 power plants with total capacity of 25,000 megawatts in the territory of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and southern Kazakhstan.

In winter, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan accumulated water in reservoirs and received electricity and energy resources (coal and natural gas) from Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. In summer, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan sent water to Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan for irrigation farming.

However, after Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan left the unified energy system of Central Asia in 2003 and 2009, respectively, the system ceased to function.