“WE WILL CONSTRUCT ROGUN HYDROELECTRIC POWER STATION”, MINISTRY OF ENERGETICS OF TAJIKISTAN

          Dushanbe, January, 28th. (NIAT "Khovar"- "Asia-plus"). — "It's not the first time that we hear negative statements of Uzbekistan's authorities concerning our erecting hydropower facilities on trans-boundary rivers of the Central Asian region", Tajikistan's Deputy Minister of Energy Pulod Muhiddinov told journalists on January, 27th. He was making comments on the recent request of the President of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov directed to the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev to affect Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan in solving water issue.           According to Mr. Muhiddinov, last December Vice-premier of Uzbekistan Rustam Azimov told during a meeting with a Tajik delegation in Tashkent that the President of Uzbekistan was dissatisfied with the plan of building the 335-metre-high Rogun dam in Tajikistan.           "Following our Government's instructions, and with assistance of the World Bank (WB), Tajikistan's Ministry of Energy had invited international experts to make examination of the Rogun hydro system construction project. They made a conclusion that building of that HPS does not cause fears for this region's countries, neither in the ecological plan nor in the issue of water", told the top manager of Tajikistan's Ministry of Energy.           "The results of the WB experts' examination has been already agreed upon and approved by all the states of our region, except for Uzbekistan, the latter having twice rejected the WB offer to familiarize with results of examination", went on Mr. Muhiddinov. He noticed that despite of it the final Technical Feasibility Study for construction of the Rogun hydropower station should be finished within this year. The preliminary variant of the project has been already prepared.           "We will build the Rogun HPS even if it is against someone's wish", declared Deputy Minister of Energy of Tajikistan.            He informed that some international financial organizations have already expressed their willingness to finance the Rogun project. "Foreign private investors can also participate in the funding of the project, yet the controlling stake should remain in the hands of Tajikistan's Government", concluded Mr. Muhiddinov.