“Too much attention has been paid to energy independence in recent years. We have spent $1 billion on this, but in the end, we live with a shortage of electricity,” honored power engineer of Kyrgyzstan Kaliy Rakhimov has said at a round-table conference.
According to him, the energy system has not seen any development for the last 30 years. Only Tashkumyr and Shamaldysai hydropower stations were built, and one unit was put into operation at Kambar-Ata-2 and the Heating and Power Plant in Bishkek. This is a continuation of the work that was carried out back in Soviet times.
“There was no serious growth. If we compare with our neighbors, then the capacity of the energy system has increased by 40-50% in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. We need to pay attention to development, to integrate. We need to get benefits from the interconnected power system. The neighbors are also interested in it,” Kaliy Rakhimov said.
“Income will increase, of course, after increase in tariffs. But the system is such that everything is divided into seven companies and money is distributed. If this continues, there will be no development. I suggested developing small-scale energy by own forces, but the answer was that there was no money. It is an easy and convenient answer. Although billions are circulating in the energy sector, there is no one to decide on the allocation of funds for construction of small hydropower plants,” he concluded. (24.kg/Business World Magazine)
