Launch of CASA-1000 power project on May 12

The leaders of four nations-Pakistan, Afghanistan and Kyrgyzstan will gather in Tajikistan to launch the construction of the much-awaited CASA-1000 power project on May 12, 2016. Addressing a press conference, Tajikistan Ambassador Sherali S. Jononov also announced direct introduction of flights between Pakistan and Tajikistan, to improve people-to-people contacts and bilateral trade between the two countries. Afghanistan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Pakistan, and Tajikistan have been pursuing the development of electricity trading arrangements and the establishment of a Central Asia-South Asia Regional Electricity Market (CASAREM).
The initial plan was to export power in the range of 1,000 to 1,300 MW from the Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan to Pakistan and Afghanistan. The major share of the export will be used by Pakistan, and approximately 300 MW will be imported by Afghanistan. Ambassador Jononov said they had received confirmation from the Foreign Office that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif would also attend the launching ceremony of CASA -1000 MW power import project to take place in a city near to Dushanbe.
"President of Afghanistan Ashraf Ghani and Kyrgyzstan President Almazbek Atambayev will also attend the launching ceremony of the project," he said, adding that it would be a 'peace line' project which would connect neighbours in the region. He said the project would be completed in two years after the launch and total project cost stood at $1.2 billion. He said that Pakistan would get clean hydel energy at cheap rates to minimise energy crisis in Pakistan. The project will also lead to building close economic relations between neighbours - Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
He said that Tajikistan is rich in hydel resources which has more than 1000 rivers and lakes and added that all legal, technical and financial formalities have been completed before the launch of the project. Responding to a question regarding security in Afghanistan, he said that Afghanistan is a sovereign country and has given sovereign guarantee to protect the transmission line passing through it.
"We have two transmission lines from Tajikistan to Afghanistan for the last seventeen years and there have been no security issues," he said, adding that things are moving forward with focus on energy and trade in the region. He said that Tajikistan has offered investment opportunities to investors of Pakistan and these could be strengthened by enhancing air contacts.
Among other sectors of the economy, he said the energy sector of Tajikistan has been showing sustainable growth for the last 15 years. During this period, hydro energy generation has been stable. In addition to big plants, he said, there are also 20 medium and 40 small hydro stations in remote mountain areas, with capacities ranging from 5 kilowatt (kwt) to 1,500 kwt.
In Pakistan, the rate for firm energy is 13.2 US cents/kilowatt hour (kWh) and the rate for non-firm is 9.2 cents/kWh, while the generation cost in Afghanistan is estimated to be at least 6 cents/kWh based on the provided information. The electricity cost including all charges will be 9.35 cents per unit. Pakistan has been importing electricity for Gwadar area at a rate of 10 cents per unit.
The project will not only alleviate electricity shortages in Pakistan but will also replace fuel-based electricity generation for Afghanistan and Pakistan. It will also establish Afghanistan as a viable transit country and offer transmission capacity for other countries during the off-peak season. He said it will also create a viable governance mechanism to build confidence between neighbours. He also announced the launch of direct flights between Pakistan and Tajikistan. He said it was a big achievement to enhance trade and people-to-people contacts between the two regions.
He said it would also result in enhancing trade between the two countries and thereby enhancing people-to-people, education, culture and business contacts between the two nations. The representative of Somon Air of Tajikistan, Nadeem Z. Cheema, said first flight would start on May 6 from Lahore to Dushanbe. He said that there would be two flights a week. "In the second phase, we will start flights from Islamabad and Karachi after receiving an encouraging response," Cheema said. He said that each flight would have 4-5 tons of cargo facility and that implies traders would be able to export 20 tons of cargo every month.