Officials from the Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat (DABS) said this week that construction of the CASA-1000 power project will start in Afghanistan within the next two months.  

DABS chairman Amanullah Ghalib said a meeting was held in New Delhi recently on technical feasibility studies of the CASA-1000 power project and that the reviews and assessments have been completed. Ghalib said they will now move onto the next phase and construction work will soon start on the project.  

Ghalib said the project will be managed by an Indian company in cooperation with DABS and the Ministry of Energy and Water. 

“The feasibility studies have all been completed. The companies will start their practical work within the next month or two months. Those areas that are not vulnerable (regarding security), that are easily accessible and that do have harsh winter (weather conditions), are our priority and the work will first start there,” said Ghalib. 

Ghalib also said the main agreement – or Master Agreement -  of the power project has been signed between the countries involved. 

Based on this agreement, Afghanistan in addition to having the right to buy power and receive transit duties, also has the right to sell its extra power to other countries. 

“If the project is implemented and Afghanistan get its share from it, not only will the provinces, where the line runs through, benefit, but their neighboring provinces will also benefit. We not only benefit financially, but also will be able to activate our heavy industries by using the power. These two benefits will cause our economy to grow,” economic affairs analyst Samim Saram said. 

Based on the schedule, CASA-1000 power project should be fully operational by 2020. 

Overview of CASA-1000:
 
The CASA-1000 project will include:
 
• 500 kV AC line from Datka (in the Kyrgyz Republic) to Sugd-500 (477 kilometers away, in Tajikistan)

• 1,300 megawatt AC-DC Converter Station at Sangtuda (Tajikistan)

• 750-kilometer High Voltage DC line from Sangtuda (Tajikistan) to Nowshera (Pakistan)

• 1,300 megawatt DC-AC Converter Station at Nowshera
 
CASA-1000 project will start from Kyrgyzstan and it will reach Afghanistan through Tajikistan and onward to Pakistan’s Peshawar city. The length of the project in Afghanistan is estimated to eventually run for 562km.

With the implementation of the project, 1300 megawatts of electricity from Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan will be transmitted to Afghanistan and Pakistan. Afghanistan will receive 300 megawatts of power and the remaining one thousand megawatts will be transmitted to Pakistan via Afghanistan territory.
 
The CASA-1000 Project is an important step in building a functioning, efficient electricity system across Central Asia and South Asia. By facilitating clean power export revenues for the Central Asian countries and by alleviating electricity shortages in the South Asian countries, this project will enhance growth prospects across both regions.
 
This project demonstrates landmark cooperation among the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. The modern and efficient CASA-1000 electricity transmission system will help transform the region and signify an important step toward realizing the planned Central Asia-South Asia Regional Electricity Market (CASAREM). The CASAREM initiative will help not only these four countries but also improve the electrical systems and develop inter-regional cooperation between Central Asia and South Asia.
 
Afghanistan will receive between $40 and $50 million in transit duties from the project annually. The project will also enhance the economic connectivity between the contributing nations and will boost Afghanistan’s transit reputation in the region and entire Asia.