The US Agency for International Development (USAID) has announced the launch of a new 5-year regional energy program “Power Central Asia”, said US Embassy to Kazakhstan.
The budget of the project is US $38.9 million. It will help five countries—Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan—to meet their national energy priorities, reap economic benefits from cross-border energy trading, and improve energy security through greater regional connectivity.
“Power Central Asia” will cooperate with national governments, utilities, private sector and other stakeholders and will based on three pillars:
- developing domestic energy market liberalization reforms
- enhancing the regional electricity market
- promoting greater use of clean energy technologies from conventional and renewable sources.
The program will facilitate balance hydropower generation needs in Central Asian countries with other water management priorities.
Over the past decade, USAID played a pivotal role in laying the foundation for an economically viable market-based regional power system in Central Asian countries. USAID has also strengthened regulatory frameworks to enable renewable energy development, energy efficiency improvements, digitalization of the power sector, and cybersecurity enhancements. ///nCa, 1 October 2020