DUSHANBE, June 15, Asia-Plus — The U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) has awarded an US$800,000 grant to the Ministry of Energy of Tajikistan, according to information from the U.S. Embassy in Dushanbe.
The source says the grant was awarded at the “Electricity Beyond Borders” Forum that ended in Istanbul on June 14.
The grant will fund early investment analysis in determining the viability of plans to develop electric power transmission and generation in Central Asia. Specifically, the project will evaluate options for Tajikistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan to export their excess electricity to Afghanistan and Pakistan.
An agreement conferring the grant was signed by Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Richard A. Boucher and Assadullo Ghulomov, Deputy Prime Minister, on behalf of the U.S. and Tajikistan governments, respectively. USTDA Regional Director for Europe and Eurasia Daniel D. Stein and Abdullo Yorov, Tajik Minister of Energy, signed as witnesses to the grant agreement.
The Ministry of Energy has selected The AES Corporation of Arlington, Virginia, to perform the USTDA-funded analysis. In addition to the USTDA grant, AES will provide additional resources towards its completion.
Expanding and integrating regional power infrastructure in Central and South Asia were in the center of discussion at the Forum that was sponsored by the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) and took place as part of the agency”s Central Asian Infrastructure Integration Initiative.
The goal of the Central Asia Infrastructure Integration Initiative is to facilitate the establishment of needed infrastructure to foster regional cooperation and economic development though trade. The U.S. government”s commitment to this goal was announced by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice during her visit to the region last fall. In particular, the Initiative targets activities in the areas of energy, transportation, and communications that promote cooperation among the countries and their integration into the global economy.
The conference held in cooperation with the U.S. Department of State featured major near-term public infrastructure projects in the region valued at more than $8 billion. The event has attracted more than 100 public and private sector participants from the United States and Central and South Asia.
The U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) advances economic development and U.S. commercial interests in developing and middle-income countries. The agency funds various forms of technical assistance, early investment analysis, training, orientation visits and business workshops that support the development of a modern infrastructure and a fair and open trading environment. USTDA”s strategic use of foreign assistance funds to support sound investment policy and decision-making in host countries creates an enabling environment for trade, investment and sustainable economic development. In carrying out its mission, USTDA gives emphasis to economic sectors that may benefit from U.S. exports of goods and services.
