DUSHANBE, January 17, 2014, Asia-Plus -- The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will not participate in implementation of the Central Asia South Asia Electricity Transmission and Trade Project (CASA 1000), C.C. Yu, ADB’s Country Director for Tajikistan, told journalists in Dushanbe on January 16.

According to him, their position on the project has not changed and they will not participate in implementation of it. 

“However, it does not mean that we oppose the implementation of this project.  It is not so.  The Bank will continue to provide support for regional power interchange, using other schemes that will involve more countries,” CC. Yu said.

“Besides, we take into consideration the Bank resources,” said ADB’s country director.  “The ADB resources are not unlimited.  For example, if we provide a large grant to upgrade the Golovnaya hydropower plant, naturally our resources will not be enough to support other projects.”

C.C Yu added that ADB would not participate in implementation of the Roghun hydroelectricity project as well.  

 We will recall that article by Zafar Bhutta entitled “Project Financing: ADB to Pull Out of CASA 1,000 MW Import Project” that was published in The Express Tribune (Pakistan) on June 6, 2013 notes that the ADB has decided to part ways with the CASA 1000 due to security risks in Afghanistan.

According to the article, a senior official of the Ministry of Water and Power [of Pakistan] said that the estimated total cost of the project was $966 million, of which ADB was to sponsor 40%.  “The project was to be funded by the World Bank, ADB and Inter-American Development Bank.  Now, ADB has decided to pull out of the project due to security risks in Afghanistan,” the official said.

CASA 1000 is designed to transmit 1,300MW of surplus electricity from Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan through Afghanistan, which is going to consume 300MW, to Pakistan.

The CASA 1000 Project is expected to develop the necessary physical infrastructure and create the institutional and legal framework to transmit surplus power available from existing generation facilities in Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan to Afghanistan and Pakistan.  The physical infrastructure for CASA 1000 is likely to include: a 500 kV high voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission system between Tajikistan and Pakistan through Afghanistan; an AC transmission link from Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to connect to the HVDC line from Tajikistan to South Asia;  and the necessary electricity sub-stations in Kabul, Peshawar and Sangtuda (in Tajikistan).