DUSHANBE, May 13, Asia-Plus /Payrav Chorshanbiyev/ — The World Bank notes that according to the CASA 1000 Power Project design, the countries are expected to jointly select a creditworthy trustee bank (Account Bank) to manage revenues, before the commissioning of the project.
The Account Bank will be located in a country not involved in the project and will be audited annually. For both Exporter countries, a revenue management program will be agreed with the International Financial Institutions (IFIs) to ensure transparent accounting and use of funds from power exports. The export revenues will be primarily used for the uninterrupted operation of the CASA-1000 project, including timely payments to the power producers, and debt service payments, as well as to help energy efficiency programs and other measures to deal with the winter energy shortages in Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.
The estimated project cost, including contingencies, taxes and interest during construction, is US$1.17 billion. This includes the cost of the technical assistance to support project implementation and community support programs along the transmission lines corridor.
The project reportedly has seven financiers: the World Bank (through the International Development Association, IDA); the European Investment Bank (EIB); the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF); the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB); the US Agency for International Development (USAID); the UK Department for International Development (DFID); and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). The USAID and DFID contributions are channeled through a World Bankadministered Multi-Donor Trust Fund to consolidate funding support from bilateral donors who have expressed interest in supporting the project. Currently, there is a small financing gap for Pakistan and Kyrgyzstan that may be filled by additional financing from the World Bank once the final costs have been established after receipt of the bid prices.
The transmission utility of each country will own the assets located in their respective country. The four countries will select an international company to operate and maintain the high voltage direct current (DC) system for cross-country coordination on the dispatch of power, metering, technical faults, etc. The national transmission companies will operate and maintain the alternating current (AC) facilities in their respective territories.
