Elvira Kadyrova
During a meeting of the Kyrgyz Parliament’s committee on Fuel and Energy and Subsoil Use, the lawmakers asked the minister of energy and industry about the prospects for purchasing gas from Turkmenistan and the impact of supplies on the domestic price of gas, Tazabek agency reports.
“A visit to Turkmenistan is being prepared now. From there (Turkmenistan), we can supply gas via Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan,” said minister Kubanychbek Turdubayev.
According to the minister, “the technical capabilities for this are available.”
Turdubayev told that, Gazprom currently supplies gas to the Bishkek Thermal Power Plant at a price of US$235 (per thousand cubic meters – without taxes) and ready to reduce the price to US$170.
However, the Kyrgyz side insists on reducing the cost of supplies, and for this purpose intends to diversify the sources of supplies. In particular, negotiations are underway with Uzbekistan, and it is also planned to discuss this issue with Turkmenistan.
Kyrgyzstan consumes about 280 million cubic meters of natural gas per year, and consumption continues to grow due to the expansion of gasification. The tariff for the population is US $ 212 US dollars per 1000 cubic meters.
In the spring of 2020, the cost of Russian gas supplies to Kyrgyzstan grew due to the appreciation of the dollar against the national currency, thus leading to tariff rise for the population. ///nCa, 30 March 2021