KHOROG, February 6, 2010, Asia-Plus — The Ministry of Economic Development and Trade has endorsed new rates for electricity supplied by the Pamir Energy Company (PamirEnergy).
According to PamirEnergy, the rates were raised on average by 12.4 percent. Current prices are 2.75 cents (little more than 12 dirams) for residential customers (11.3 percent rise) and 5.15 cents (22.5 dirams) for other consumers, including federally funded institutions, industrial and commercial enterprises (13/4 percent rise), the source at PamirEnergy said.
He added that due to subsidy mechanism offered by the governments of Tajikistan and Switzerland, residential customers in Gorno Badakhshan last year consumed electricity on average for US$81.00 per year and US$6.75 per month. “According to the preliminary estimates, this year, with 11.3 percent rise for the electricity price some 80 percent of families in the region will pay less than US$63 per year,” the source said.
In 2009, the rate of collection of funds for the consumed electricity was 92 percent. “Residential customers in Rushan and Vanj districts have not had electricity debts for already several years,” said the source, “In 2009, residents of the Shugnan district also did not have electricity debts. The electricity payment situation is not bad in the city of Khorog and the Darvoz district as well.”
PamirEnergy, which is 70% owned by the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development (AKFED) and 30% by the World Bank’s private finance division, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), has a 25 year concession on the assets formerly under the management on Barqi Tojik (Tajik electricity supplier) in GBAO. In exchange for this concession (management right), PamirEnergy invests in completing the Pamir hydropower station, rehabilitating power generation, transmission and distribution assets, and improving the management of the company.
