DUSHANBE, October 22, 2009, Asia-Plus — Increase in Uzbek shipments to Tajikistan depends on increase in prepayment rates, deputy director general of Tojiktransgaz (Tajik state natural-gas distributor), Shavkat Shoimov, said in an interview with Asia-Plus.
According to him, Uzbekistan now supplies natural gas to Tajikistan at the rate of 12,000 cubic meters per hour. “Half of this amount is distributed to Tajik Aluminum Company (Talco) and Tojikcement (Dushanbe cement plant) and small part is distributed to other industrial enterprises and the public,” Shoimov said.
He added that under an agreement reached between Tojiktransgaz and Uztransgaz (Uzbek natural-gas supplier) recently, Tojiktransgaz now made prepayments for gas deliveries every ten days. “On October 20, we remitted US$500,000 that will allow us receiving 12,000 cubic meters of gas per hour till the end of this month,” said Shoimov, “To increase gas shipments we have to increase prepayment rate, while we do not have enough funds to do this.”
He added that Tojiktransgaz had paid off their debts (US$18 million) to Uztransgaz. In the meantime, SomonSughdgaz now owes more than 1.5 million U.S. dollars to Tojiktransgaz, and Barqi Tojik and the empties-producing enterprise Lal now owe US$900,000 for gas consumptions each. “We are currently conducting negotiations with these companies over debt repayments and if they repay their debts we will be able to increase the prepayment rates,” Shoimov said.
We will recall that the Tojiktransgaz director general Saidmahmad Sharofiddinov told Asia-Plus on October 7 that to pay the debt to Uztransgaz they have taken a US10 million loan from Orienbonk that has been divided among four companies – Tojiktransgaz, Barqi Tojik power holding, Talco and Tojikcement. Thereby, Talco and Tojikcement have paid off their debts to Tojiktransgaz – US$100,000 and US$600,000 respectively – and made prepayments.
This year, Uzbekistan sells its natural gas to Tajikistan for US$240 per 1,000 cubic meters. Tajikistan plans to buy some 530 million cubic meters of natural gas from Uzbekistan this year and it has received some 191 million cubic meters of Uzbek gas to this date.
