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An interesting article examining Tajikistan’s ambitions to become the “battery” of Central Asia, namely a delay in such due to shortages of concrete necessary for a big hydropower plant under construction. According to the article:

“…Tajikistan plans to be the largest electricity exporter in Central Asia. Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan have already stated they are ready to buy cheap electricity generated at Tajik hydropower plants….”

I can’t help but imagine that China is also keeping a close eye on how this resource may develop. As we have noted before, Tajikistan is very rich in hydro resources. However, despite all the discussion of power exports, it lacks 3 – 3.5 billion kilowatts of electricity in winter time. Last winter blackouts occurred even in Dushanbe, as well as rural areas, where about 75% of Tajik of the population lives. There were no electricity deliveries in Tajikistan from last October to this March. So, I believe it will still some time before this “battery” is fully charged.