DUSHANBE, December 28, 2012, Asia-Plus — Tajikistan Aluminum Company (TALCO) does not fear even the full disruption of Uzbek gas shipments to Tajikistan, Igor Sattarov, a spokesman for TALCO, told journalists in Dushanbe on December 28.
According to him, there will be no setback in production because the Tajik aluminum smelter now covers 90 percent of its requirements in gas through gasification of domestic coal.
The enterprise has gas generators for gasification of coal. TALCO’s annual requirements in gas are 50 million cubic meters and 45 million cubic meters of gas is generated through gasification of coal. “Therefore, disruption of Uzbek gas shipments will not affect aluminum production,” Sattarov said.
Coal gasification is the process of producing coal gas, a type of syngas (synthesis gas) – a mixture of carbon monoxide (CO), hydrogen (H2), carbon dioxide (CO2) and water vapour (H2O)–from coal.
Sattarov noted that TALCO began to purchase gas generators in 2009. He noted that the aluminum smelter now received Uzbek gas in small volumes.
Tajikistan is Central Asia’s biggest producer of primary aluminum. Tajikistan relies heavily on the smelter”s earnings. Official data show aluminum accounted for around 57 percent of all Tajik hard currency export revenue this year.
The aluminum plant, run by the Tajik Aluminum Company (Talco), was launched in late March 1975. It is one of the ten largest aluminum smelters in the world and provides up to 70% of the country’s foreign currency earnings, consuming 40% of the country’s electrical power. Tajikistan does not mine alumina but imports the raw material through tolling arrangements.
