DUSHANBE, August 30, 2012, Asia-Plus – Foreign carriers have been delivering building materials to Tajikistan for the Roghun hydroelectric power plant (HPP) from Iran, the Uzbek news agency,
Harakat
, reports.
According to
Harakat
, some companies are delivering the building materials “straight from Japanese plants in Iran and after a time, these materials are being delivered to Tajikistan under other documents.”
According to transportation documents drawn by Japanese producers, the forwarder of metal constructions works is the Japanese company, SHINJUKU TATSUMI BLDG, while according to documents drawn by the Iranian sides, the same metal constructions are mentioned as materials for civilian construction,
Harakat
noted.
We will recall that the construction of Roghun HPP was begun in 1980 during the Soviet Union, but stalled in the 1990s for lack of funds. Currently most of the site preparation works about 70% of the underground works (access tunnels, penstocks, diversion and outlet tunnels, chambers for turbines/generators and transformers) have reportedly been completed.
The Roghun HPP would have a reservoir with multi-year regulation mode with a dam height of 335 m, located on the Vaksh River. The reservoir would have a total storage volume of 13 km3; a live storage of 8.6 km3, and would likely extend upstream over a distance of about 70 km. The installed capacity is proposed to be 6×600 MW (totaling 3,600 MW) and the annual power generation would be 13,300 GWh. Despite significant storage, the Roghun HPP was expected to produce electricity in Tajikistan and develop irrigation in the region. The majority of the electricity to be produced by Roghun HPP is expected to be exported.
Uzbekistan opposes the construction of the Roghun dam, arguing that it will have negative environmental consequences for the region. The Uzbek authorities claim that if Tajikistan goes on to complete Roghun as planned, it would leave Uzbekistan facing water shortages for eight years until Roghun dam filled with water.
