DUSHANBE, May 19, 2009, Asia-Plus — Open joint-stock company (OJSC) Tajiktransgaz (Tajik state natural-gas distributor) now owes 14 million U.S. dollars to Uzbekistan for natural-gas deliveries, the deputy head of Tajiktransgaz, Shavkat Shoimov, said in an interview with Asia-Plus.
“Therefore, Uzbekistan has cut natural-gas shipments to Tajikistan,” said Shoimov, “Uztransgaz currently supplies to Tajikistan only 380,000-400,000 cubic meters of natural gas per day, while under the agreement signed at the beginning of this year it was supposed to supply up to 1.5 million cubic meters of gas per day.”
According to him, they are not able to repay their debt to Uztransgaz due to low rate of collection of funds from enterprises and organizations. “Among the most incorrigible nonpayers are Barqi Tojik power holding (33 million somoni), Somonsughdgaz (11.7 million somoni), Tojikcement (4.3 million somoni) and Tojikazot (140,000 somoni),” the Tajiktransgaz official said.
In the meantime, the debt-ridden and loss-making fertilizer plant, Tojikazot, recently applied to the Ministry of Energy and Industries (MoEI) proposing to suspend its equipment because it is currently not in operation due to lack of gas supplies. However, the Energy and Industries Minister Gul Sherali refused Tojikazot’s proposal. The minister charged relevant structures to take measures to ensure resumption of gas supplies to the fertilizer plant, the source at a MoEI said.
We will recall that the Sarband mayor Hikmatullo Rajabov said in an interview with Asia-Plus on January 14 this year in January this year that Tojikazot has lost $1.4 million in business due to a lack of gas supplies. According to him, supply problems extend well beyond the area’s main employer, costing the local economy in excess of $2 million. In addition, 500 workers at the plant have been authorized to take “unpaid vacation” since December 21.
Tajikazot is partly state owned, with the government controlling a 20 percent stake in the troubled enterprise. Cypriot-registered Highrock Holdings Ltd, owned by Ukrainian oligarch Dmitry Firtash, controls the remaining 80 percent of the enterprise.
