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Afghanistan: Dams

Volume 717: debated on Monday 1 March 2010

Question

Asked by

To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress has been made in installing the third turbine at the Kajakai Dam; what was the total financial and manpower cost of Operation Oqab Tsuka; and whether the position has been affected by financial constraints or the level of planning. [HL1053]

USAID, the US Federal Government agency responsible for the US effort in the field of development and reconstruction, is committed to installing a third unit at Kajaki which would increase the generation capacity to 51 megawatts, and to constructing a new transmission line from Kajaki to Kandahar when the security situation becomes permissive. The Ministry of Defence does not calculate the financial cost of individual operations. Four thousand International Security Assistance Force troops were involved in the operation, including troops from the UK, US, Canada, Denmark and Australia. While the dam does not operate to its full capacity, currently it does provide electricity to the population of Helmand. Two generators are in place and being used, along with diesel-powered, local generation to increase supply. While the security situation in the area makes access and delivery to Kajaki challenging, supplies, including oil, are being delivered. USAID is leading the work on the refurbishment of the power station. It continues to plan to make the facility fully operational.