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Further Reading

Energy

The energy sector of Tajikistan includes several entities. The electric power is the responsibility of the State-owned joint stock company Barqi Tojik, which entirely controls production, transportation and distribution of electricity in Tajikistan. Oil and gas production, and development of oil and gas deposits are the responsibility of the State Committee for Oil and Gas. Distribution of natural and liquefied gas in Tajikistan is carried out by the national gas company TajikGas, while import and distribution of oil products are carried out by the State Company Tajiknefteproduct. The coal-mining sector is controlled by the State Committee for Industry.

Tajikistan has 4.4 gigawatts (GWe) of generating capacity, about 90% of which is hydroelectric. A major portion of this hydroelectric capacity is used in aluminum production, which consumes 40% of all the country's electric power. Tajikistan produces practically no oil, gas, or coal of its own. However, Tajikistan imports 43 billion cubic feet of natural gas per year, mostly from Uzbekistan.

Tajikistan has proven reserves of 12 million barrels of oil, most of which are located in the northern part of the country in the Leninobod Soghd Region. The national oil company is Tajikneftegaz, which handles oil exploration, drilling, and production.

In 2001, Tajik oil production was only 350 barrels per day (b/d). There has been a long period of production decline since Tajikistan produced 1,311 b/d in 1992. This decrease has been attributed to the 1992-1997 civil war, economic troubles, and lack of investment in the oil infrastructure.

Tajikistan consumes 29,000 b/d of oil products, almost all of which are imported. The main source is Uzbekistan, which provides 70% of Tajikistan's oil product imports.

In July 2001, Tajikistan brought its first small oil refinery online at Konibodom. The refinery has a capacity of 400 b/d, and produces gasoline, diesel fuel, kerosene, and fuel oil. The production is far too small for the country's needs, however; Tajikistan still imports almost all its oil as refined petroleum products.

Natural Gas

Tajikistan has 200 billion cubic feet (Bcf) of natural gas reserves, comprised of several fields. In 2000, Tajikistan began operations in the Khoja Sartez field in the southern Khatlon Region, and has also increased its activity in the Qizil Tumshuq deposit in the Kolkhozobod District of the southern Khatlon Region. Tajikistan has also tried to increase its own gas production, in 2000, by exploratory drilling in the Khatlon region. Apparently, some of the drilling has been successful enough to interest China in future drilling activities.

The total natural gas production for Tajikistan in 2000 was 1.4 Bcf. With its small domestic production, Tajikistan must rely on imports for 95% of the natural gas it consumes.

Tajikistan has had continuing problems in paying for the gas it imports. There is an intergovernmental agreement with Uzbekistan for a fixed annual quantity, but consumption has been running ahead of schedule. An additional problem is that only 18% of the gas consumed in 2001 was paid for by users. As a result of these issues, Tajikistan has had to cut off nonpaying customers and negotiate with suppliers for more gas.

Hydroelectric

The major river system in Tajikistan is the Amudarya watershed. The Amudarya River itself only forms a relatively small portion of Tajikistan's southern border with Afghanistan as it flows westward then northwest toward the Aral Sea. Its major tributaries within Tajikistan include the Panj River along the southern border of Tajikistan with Afghanistan, the Gunt and Bartango rivers in the eastern part of the country, and the Kafirnigan and Vakhsh rivers in central and western Tajikistan. Of these, the Vakhsh is the most important, in terms of power production potential. Other river systems in Tajikistan are the Zerovshan, which flows westward into Uzbekistan before eventually merging with the Amudarya, and the Syrdarya, which flows westward through the northern panhandle section of Tajikistan into Uzbekistan and then into Kazakhstan before eventually emptying into the Aral Sea.

There is a greater hydroelectric power capacity in Tajikistan than any other country in in Central Asia. Tajikistan has the potential to produce more than 300 billion kilowatt hours electricity per year, but currently produces only 16.5 billion kilowatt hours. The majority of Tajikistan's hydroelectric energy is produced by the hydroelectric stations on the Vakhsh River, with a total capacity of about 3,800 megawatts (MWe), producing 14 billion kilowatt hours annually. The largest of these is the Nurek hydroelectric facility, which is rated at 3,000 MWe.

An even larger facility at Roghun (which at 335 meters height will be the tallest dam in the world) is under construction and will have a capacity of 3,600 MWe, but little is being done at present, partly because of security problems in the area. There are also concerns about the relatively high seismic activity of the area, which present engineering as well as safety issues.

Tajikistan currently has a moderately large hydropower plant under construction at Sangtuda. The Khatlon dam for this power plant (also referred to as the Sangtuda 1 & 2 power stations) is being built with Russian and Iranian financing; overall, the two Sangtuda power stations are expected to generate nearly 900 MWe of electricity. This has been a very long-duration project which was started back in the Soviet days, but has sat in limbo for many years because of lack of funding. The government of Tajikistan now considers Sangtuda 2 to be first priority and is willing to commit state resources toward its completion.

An even larger hydroelectric facility is in the planning stages for Shurob, which could have a generating capacity of about 750 MWe. A similar sized facility is planned for Kaphtarguzar, on the Obikhingou River in the Garm Valley, while a truly mammoth hydroelectric facility of about 4,000 MWe capacity is being planned for Dashtijum, on the Panj River along the Afghan border.

Energy Transmission Infrastructure

Tajikistan has two separate electrical networks, both linking to Uzbekistan. Tajikistan's system is split into a northern grid in the Leninabad region and a southern grid. There are plans to eventually link the two systems, and a study is being financed with Kuwaiti aid to look at possible improvements to the Tajik power grid.

There are natural gas pipelines from Uzbekistan to Dushanbe, and under a barter deal with Uzbekistan, gas is exported from Uzbekistan to Tajikistan in exchange for transit across Tajikistan for a rail transport corridor and a natural gas pipeline. There are also a number of smaller hydroelectric projects active or in construction. The Pamir II dam, on the Gunt River, is almost completed and will have a capacity of 14 MWe to go along with another 14 MWe capacity at the already-existing Pamir I dam. However, another $10-$12 million is needed to reportedly redo the water supply so that there will be a large enough volume of water to drive the hydro turbines.