DUSHANBE, March 2, 2012, Asia-Plus — Barqi Tojik (the state-owned utility responsible for generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity in Tajikistan) has called on the population to use electric power economically.
Nozir Yodgori, a spokesman for Barqi Tojik, says that it is still premature to speaking about easing or ending electricity rationing.
Yodgori told Asia-Plus Friday afternoon that the water flow in the Vakhsh River is currently at 114 cubic meters per second, while as of March 2, 2011, the water flow in the Vakhsh River was 90 cubic meters per second. “As of March 2, water levels at the reservoir powering the Norak hydroelectric power plant (HPP) were at the level of 868.45 meters,” the spokesman said.
According to him, Tajik power plants generated 46 million kWh of electric power on March 1. “The Sangtuda-2 HPP, which has been built with help of Iranian specialists, now generates up to one million kWh of electricity per day,” Yodgori added.
In the spring and summer, Tajikistan’s hydropower plants generate a huge amount of electricity that is exported to neighboring countries, but in the autumn and winter, especially if the summer was dry and water levels in reservoirs are low, electricity rationing is introduced in the country.
Electricity rationing is usually introduced in Tajikistan in November and lasts through April next year. Measures seeking to curb the country’s rising electricity consumption are usually introduced in all regions except Dushanbe. In addition to curbing rising consumption, the move also stems from a decline in the water level in the Norak reservoir.
