Kyrgyzstan to construct two substations near Chinese border to provide electricity exports
BISHKEK. Dec 23 (Interfax) - Kyrgyzstan has begun preparatory operations to construct the Tamga-Karakol and Kemin-Torugart substations near the border with China that will ensure exporting electricity to China, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov said.
"Preparatory work is currently underway as part of the Tamga-Karakol and Kemin-Torugart projects to construct powerful substations to ensure exporting electricity to China," Japarov said at a ceremony for the 90th anniversary of the country's energy sector.
Japarov also reported on construction progress of the Kambar-Ata-1 Hydroelectric Power Plant.
"The Kambar-Ata-1 HPP construction project, which we call the 'project of the century", is actively developing with the participation of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and the support of the World Bank. If everything goes according to plan, then we should begin construction on the base dam and other infrastructure facilities by summer," Japarov said, noting that launching the Kambar-Ata-1 HPP would allow the Toktogul HPP to operate at optimal mode and ensure water supplies to neighboring countries in the spring and summer, and would also fully meet Kyrgyzstan's electricity needs in the autumn and winter.
"Constructing the hydroelectric power plant is a strategic path to the country's energy independence. Moreover, the Kambarata HPP-1 will be an important aspect in managing Central Asia's water resources efficiently," Japarov said.
Japarov also said that construction has begun on solar and wind power plants throughout the country. "Favorable conditions have been created for investors, including tax breaks, preferences, financial guarantees, as well as the possibility to set electricity prices in foreign currency," he said.
As previously reported, the respective energy ministers of Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan in June signed an agreement on preparing to construct the Kambarata HPP-1, for which the parties intend to create a joint stock company. The founders' own funds, as well as borrowed and grant funds from international financial institutions and commercial banks, will be the principal sources to finance the project.
The 1860 MW hydroelectric power plant is expected to generate 5 billion kWh of electricity per year. According to preliminary estimates, the height of the dam will be 256 meters, and the volume of water accumulated at the hydroelectric power plant may exceed 5 billion cubic meters. The Kyrgyz government has said that the first hydroelectric unit at the Kambarata HPP-1 is planned to be commissioned in eight years.
Kyrgyz Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers Akylbek Japarov in February said that the government had attracted $1 billion to construct the power plant. Meantime, $4.5 billion is required to commission the HPP. There are plans to begin construction on the HPP in 2025.
The HPP will be part of the Naryn-Syrdarya cascade with a daily regulation reservoir. There were plans during the Soviet Union that the complex would comprise the Kambaratinskaya HPP-1, which would be the largest station in the cascade; the Kambaratinskaya HPP-2, its counter-regulator; and the Kambaratinskaya HPP-3, the diversion, which utilizes the pressure generated during the seasonal drawdown of the Toktogul reservoir.
The HPP-2 has been partially built. The first hydroelectric unit with capacity of 120 MW was commissioned in 2010. Preparations are underway for the construction of hydroelectric unit No. 2.
