The Tajik government declared that given the consistency with international consultants, a group of experts and specialists of the World Bank it is considering construction of a complex project of Rogun hydroelectric power, being built on the Vakhsh River, 110 km to the east of Dushanbe, CA-NEWS reported.
"Tajikistan strongly supports international consultants to successfully complete the assessment and waits for the results of international expertise, while leading repair work on Rogun. To this day, there were no significant disputes between the consortium and the Tajik side," said a statement of the Government of the Republic, published on the website of the government information agency "Khovar."
The World Bank, under patronage of which a feasibility study of Rogun is held, asked the Tajik authorities not to begin construction of the first station with an intermediate height of the dam up to 120 meters on August 16. The reason for such a recommendation is that the World Bank experts have substantiated a large amount of sedimentary materials brought by the Vakhsh River.
Bank recommended that the Government of the Republic conducted a comprehensive technical, economic, environmental and social assessment of the full height of the dam. This work may take up to 8 months.
A government statement stressed the commitment of the Republic to the earlier agreements on this project and commitment to "follow the principles of transparency and corporate governance, respecting the existing rules of the World Bank."
"It should be noted the continued position of the Tajik leadership in part that implementation of hydropower projects, and, above all, completion of Rogun, shall take into account national and regional interests and in this matter Tajikistan is ready for close cooperation with its neighbors," said the statement.
The Government of Tajikistan recalled that the technical feasibility, economic profitability, environmental safety of Rogun "was checked many times and this project has received no negative assessment."
"The Government of the Republic of Tajikistan, expressing good will and a desire for an open and transparent dialogue with all interested parties, approached the World Bank, which is represented as a UN responsible structure, asking to conduct another independent international examination of the project on completion of construction of power plant. In response to this request, the World Bank supported the initiative and a feasibility study (FS) and the environmental and social impact assessment (ESIA) are successfully being conducted. In parallel there are two groups of independent international experts, one works on the technical and economic parameters and safety of the dam, and the second works on social and environmental aspect," said the statement.
The Tajik government adds that these studies cover a wide range of issues, including security, payback period required to fill the reservoir, water management, social and environmental impacts and "should not cause any concerns voiced by some parties."
Uzbekistan stands against the construction of the region's largest hydroelectric power station.
Construction site of the power station with the highest dam in the world of 335 meters is located in 110 km to the east of Dushanbe. Total of six units with total capacity of 3.6 MW will be installed at the station. The station is designed to ensure energy security in Tajikistan and export electricity to neighboring countries.
The total project cost, according to preliminary data, is more than $2 billion.
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