CASA-1000 will enable seasonal hydro-power surpluses from Central Asia to serve the growing electricity demand in Afghanistan and Pakistan

OBJECTIVES

Some countries in Central Asia enjoy a surplus of electricity during the summer season. The Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan have some of the world’s most abundant clean hydropower resources. By contrast, in nearby South Asia, Afghanistan and Pakistan struggle to meet their citizens’ electricity needs during the same period and have substantial and growing commercial and residential electricity demand. CASA-1000, a new high-voltage electricity transmission system connecting the four countries in Central and South Asia, will help alleviate chronic energy shortages by facilitating trade of electricity from the energy-abundant north to the energy-deficient south. The CASA-1000 construction project is supported by several donors and international financial institutions.

USAID provides assistance to the CASA-1000 project through its support for a Secretariat. The Secretariat is providing assistance in coordinating the procurement, construction and establishment of power transmission infrastructure, as well as commercial and institutional arrangements, to facilitate this regional and cross-border electricity trade between Central and South Asia. The project serves as a critical first step toward deepening regional energy cooperation and establishing stronger prospects for cross-border electricity trade.

ACTIVITY COUNTRIES AND DURATION

The Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, and the Republic of Tajikistan; January 2020 – June 2024

OUR WORK

USAID has provided the funding and institutional support for the project’s Inter-Governmental Council Secretariat since 2014. This facilitates establishing commercial and institutional arrangements and power transmission infrastructure for CASA-1000 to enable regional electricity trade. USAID has also provided funding to a donor trust fund to help finance the project.

EXPECTED RESULTS

The 1,300 km CASA-1000 project is currently under construction across the four participating countries, with all ten construction contracts awarded. When complete, it will provide the capacity to move 1,300 megawatts (MW) of electricity to meet the growing demand for power in South Asia from the clean hydropower resources of Central Asia.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

The total required funding of $1.2 billion for the project is being provided by combined commitments from the World Bank, Islamic Development Bank, European Investment Bank, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, UK Department for International Development, and USAID.

The facilities of the CASA-1000 Transmission System will comprise the following components:

• 470 km of 500 kV power transmission line from Datka, Kyrgyz Republic to Khujand, Tajikistan, for transmission of Kyrgyz electricity exports
• 115 km of 500 kV AC transmission line between the Regar and Sangtuda substations in Tajikistan, as well as additional grid improvements
• A 1,300 MW AC-DC Convertor Station at Sangtuda, Tajikistan
• 800 km of high voltage DC transmission line from Sangtuda to Nowshera, Pakistan
• A 1,300 MW DC-AC Convertor Station at Nowshera.

CONTACTS

USAID

Lora Kudaibergenova 
Project Management Specialist 
Economic Development Office 
USAID/Central Asia 

Email: lkudaibergenova@usaid.gov 

CASA-1000 Secretariat

Greg Osadetz
Executive Director
CASA-1000 Secretariat
Almaty, Kazakhstan
Email: greg.osadetz@casa-1000.org