Tajikistan continues reducing production of primary aluminum. Over the first nine months of this year, Tajik aluminum smelter has produced little more than 72,500 tons of primary aluminum, which was nearly 3,600 tons or 4.3 percent less than in the same period last year, according to the Ministry of Industry and New technologies (MoINT).
The Tajik Aluminum Company (TALCO) managers attribute reduction in aluminum production to ongoing major repairs on the plant.
In accordance with an agreement concluded between TALCO and Chinese companies, modernization of 300 electrolysis baths and major repairs will be completed by the end of this year, and production growth will start next year.
7,000 people now work for Tajik Aluminum Company at an average monthly wage of 1,262 somoni (equivalent to 134 U.S. dollars).
Meanwhile, processing of primary aluminum into manufactured goods in Tajikistan itself has increased. Over the first nine months of this year, some 5,900 tons of primary aluminum have been proceed into manufacture goods in Tajikistan itself, which was 260 tons more than in the same period last year.
An official source at MoINT says enterprises of chemical, engineering and defense industries together with TALCO have manufactured some 1.360 million somoni (US$144 million) worth of industrial explosives, aluminum shapes, fittings and wire yarn over the same nine-month period.
The manufactured goods have reportedly been exported to European countries, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan and Turkey.
Recall, TALCO produced 85,600 tons of primary aluminum over the first ten months of 2017, which was 23 percent less than in the same period of 2016.
Aluminum production has begun significantly decreasing in Tajikistan since November 2016.
Representatives of the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade (Moet) attributed the setback in aluminum production in the country to an electricity blackout that hit Tajikistan on October 28, 2016.
The TALCO press center noted on October 30, 2016 that the electricity blackout had nearly led to shutdown of the Tajik aluminum smelter.
Electricity blackout reportedly hit the city of Tursunzoda on October 28 at 6:31. Barqi Tojik (Tajikistan’s national integrated power company) tried to resume electricity supply to the aluminum smelter at 8:40 pm but it failed. Power supply was resumed only at 9:30 pm but Barqi Tojik needed another one and a half hours to resume normal power supply to the smelter, therefore, normal power supply to the smelter was reportedly resumed at 11:18 pm.
Damaged caused to the Tajik aluminum smelter by the power outage has been estimated at 8 million U.S. dollars.
The Tajik Aluminum Company (TALCO) is one of the ten largest aluminum smelters in the world. It consumes more than 30 percent of the country’s electrical power. TALCO is wholly owned by the Tajik government. Tajikistan does not mine alumina but imports the raw material through tolling arrangements.
Construction of the Tajik aluminum plant (TadAZ) began in 1972, and the first pouring of aluminum took place on March 31, 1975. THz Tajik aluminum smelter has a rated capacity of 517,000 tons of primary aluminum per year. On April 3, 2007, TadAZ was officially renamed to TALCO – Tajik Aluminum Company.
