VZCZCXRO9192
OO RUEHLN RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHDBU #0199 0371156
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 061156Z FEB 07
FM AMEMBASSY DUSHANBE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 9571
INFO RUEHC/USAID WASHDC
RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE
RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL PRIORITY 1969
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI PRIORITY 1988
RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD PRIORITY 2011
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEHDBU/AMEMBASSY DUSHANBE 1161

UNCLAS DUSHANBE 000199 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
USAID FOR EGAT/I&E/E 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL ECON EAID ENRG TI
SUBJECT: FLOOD SHUTS DOWN TAJIKISTAN'S PAMIR I POWER STATION 
 
REF: A) 06 DUSHANBE 1594  B) 05 DUSHANBE 1553 
 
¶1.  (SBU) Pamir Energy, the Aga Khan-supported energy company 
that serves Tajikistan's remote Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous 
Region, suffered a major disruption February 5 when the 
powerhouse at Pamir I hydro power station flooded, causing local 
employees to shut down the 28 MW station (and run for their 
lives).  Munir Merali, Resident Representative for the Aga Khan 
Development Network in Tajikistan, told PolOff a team of experts 
was already en route to the regional capital Khorog February 6 
to conduct an initial assessment, but the power station was 
expected to remain offline for a few months, leaving Pamir 
Energy with only 9 MW of electricity from its Khorog hydropower 
station to distribute to customers. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Merali reported that the turbines appeared to be 
undamaged, but they would need to replace most of the wiring 
before the station could go online. Although the cause of the 
flooding remains unclear, Pamir I engineers on site proposed 
several hypotheses, ranging from a problem in one of the two 
penstocks that direct water from the holding reservoirs to the 
power station, to a broken protective structure above the power 
house. Pamir Energy's Swiss insurance company is also sending 
specialists to assess the damage. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Merali met with Deputy Prime Minister Asadullo 
Ghulomov (whose portfolio includes both energy policy and 
emergency response) February 6 to ensure timely government 
assistance.  Pamir Energy officials in Khorog are working with 
the Gorno-Badakhshan governor Qodir Qosimov to establish a 
rationing schedule for electricity in the region.  (Note:  Just 
one week earlier, the Tajik media quoted Qosimov calling the top 
leadership of Pamir Energy "incompetent" at a press conference 
and criticizing the high salaries of the expatriate directors. 
End note.)  Merali expressed confidence that Pamir Energy would 
be able to find the best interim solution in the remaining weeks 
of winter. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Pamir Energy is Tajikistan's first public-private 
energy joint venture, financed by a consortium of Aga Khan Fund 
for Economic Development (AKFED), the World Bank's International 
Finance Corporation, World Bank, and the Swiss government (ref 
A).  Pamir Energy generates electricity in a remote region 
containing only five percent of Tajikistan's population and cut 
off from Tajikistan's main electrical grid.  Pamir Energy 
significantly increased the electricity supply in 
Gorno-Badakhshan by doubling the power at Pamir I in October 
2005 and rehabilitating the Khorog station, but has encountered 
numerous problems collecting fees from customers and has 
received little support from the local government for its cost 
recovery efforts. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Comment: Thanks to Pamir Energy, until February 5, 
Gorno-Badakhshan was the only region in Tajikistan outside 
Dushanbe with 24/7 electricity in the winter.  Before the 
revamped Pamir I came online two years ago, the lights in Khorog 
worked only a few hours in the morning or the evening (ref B). 
The government may declare a state of emergency to deal with the 
immediate effects of the power shortage, but the conditions in 
Gorno-Badakhshan now mirror those in large areas of Tajikistan, 
where many people have not had any electricity for months.  As a 
private company trying to function in a tough environment, Pamir 
Energy likely has some difficult days ahead.  End Comment. 
 
JACOBSON