Afghanistan’s Taliban administration is awaiting the transfer of $100 million from the World Bank to resume work on the Afghan section of the CASA-1000 electricity transmission project, which aims to connect Central Asia with South Asia. This project, part of a broader $1.2 billion initiative, has seen delays since the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021.
According to a report by Tajik daily Asia-Plus, Afghan Minister of Energy and Water Resources, Mateullah Abid, stated that 70% of the Afghan section of the project has been completed, with approximately 95% of the required equipment already in place. The Afghan section of the project is estimated to cost around $260 million.
The CASA-1000 project is designed to interconnect the power grids of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, allowing hydroelectric power from Central Asia to be exported to Pakistan. The project was approved by the World Bank in March 2014, with financing from the International Development Association (IDA). Despite the disruption in Afghanistan, construction in Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Pakistan has continued, and the project is nearly complete in those countries.
The World Bank had initially suspended the Afghan section of CASA-1000 after the Taliban’s return to power, but in February 2024, the bank agreed to restart the project. This decision was made due to concerns from other participating countries that they risked losing $1 billion worth of stranded assets. The project will be restarted under a “ring-fenced” structure, which will ensure that all payments and revenue are managed outside of Afghanistan, preventing involvement from the Taliban administration.
International consultants will oversee the construction, and third-party monitoring will be used to ensure progress and verify contractor invoices. These measures aim to address concerns about the Taliban’s control over the project while ensuring its successful completion.
Earlier this week, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan successfully linked their power grids, marking a significant milestone in the CASA-1000 project, which is now one step closer to connecting the power grids of all four participating countries.
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