A new proposal by Pakistani officials could bring much-needed energy to people in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan during the frigid winters in a long-planned project that will also see Central Asian energy go to Afghanistan and Pakistan. A chain of hydropower plants strung across Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan are a key part of the Central Asia-South Asia 1000 (CASA-1000) energy project that aims to bring some 300 megawatts (MW) of electricity to Afghanistan and 1,000 MW to Pakistan annually. Kyrgyz President Sooronbai Jeenbekov said on a visit to the 1,200 MW Toktogul hydropower plant (HPP) on October 18 that “the effective implementation of the CASA-1000 project will greatly increase the export potential of the country to states in South Asia.” Toktogul has been the key domestic source of power for Kyrgyzstan for more than 40 years and, according to Jeenbekov, after its current modernization the HPP will continue to operate for […]