DUSHANBE, August 20, 2010, Asia-Plus — Russia’s participation in the CASA 1000 project would be a positive moment, Mr. Makoto Ojiro, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Country Director for Tajikistan, remarked at a news conference in Dushanbe on August 20.
According to him, there are still no any documents officially confirming Russia’s intention to join the project.
CASA 1000 is an ambitious project requiring large funding, and therefore, Russia’s intention to participate in the project would be positive, Mr. Ojiro noted.
We will recall that Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday (August 18) that Russia will consider participating in the ambitious project to deliver electricity from Tajikistan to Pakistan. “The presidents paid particular attention to the project, that is currently pending, but they would like to add practical sense to it. The project envisages the delivery of electricity from Tajikistan to Pakistan via Afghanistan,” Russia’s foreign minister said during a summit of the heads of state of Russia, Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan in Sochi, according to Russia’s RIA Novosti. Russia was invited to participate in the project, Lavrov said, adding Russia would take part in the project under mutually profitable terms.
The US$680 million Central Asia South Asia Electricity Transmission and Trade Project (CASA 1000) envisages the construction of power transmission line to supply summer surplus power from Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan to the Afghan capital of Kabul and the north west of Pakistan.
The project will be co-financed by the World Bank, ADB, Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) and private investors.
