Tajik President inspects construction of Rogun hydroelectric power plant (photo)

Tajik President Emomali Rahmon inspects construction of Rogun hydroelectric power station.

Tajik President Emomali Rahmon visited the construction site of the Rogun hydroelectric power station (HPP) on August 20 and got acquainted with the process of building the dam. This was reported by the Khovar agency.

Currently, more than 20 thousand workers and engineers and technicians are working at the HPP, as well as about 4,000 machines and mechanisms. Today, the height of the dam has reached 1,155 meters above sea level.

The Tajik government has allocated a total of 8.1 billion somoni (about $876 million) from the republican budget for the construction of the HPP for 2025, and another 11.4 billion somoni (about $1.23 billion) is planned to be allocated in 2026.

In the first seven months of this year, 8.4 billion somoni ($908 million) were spent on construction and installation work from all sources of financing. Since 2008, the Tajik government has allocated a total of 60.3 billion somoni (about $6.51 billion) from the state budget and other sources for the construction and rehabilitation of the Rogun HPP. To fully complete the project, Tajikistan will need additional funds in the amount of about $5.8 billion.

**Rogun HPP: Tajikistan's "project of the century"**

Located 110 kilometers from Dushanbe, on the Vakhsh River, the Rogun HPP is one of the largest structures in the region. Its construction began in 1976, but work was suspended after the collapse of the USSR.

Later, Tajikistan continued the construction of the hydroelectric power plant, attracting its own funds and financial assistance from international funds and organizations. Currently, two of the six units are in operation. Environmentalists are concerned that the use of the Rogun reservoir will prolong the degradation of the unique ecosystems in the lower reaches of the Amu Darya for another 60-100 years.