DUSHANBE (TCA) — In 2016 Tajikistan did not increase primary aluminum production, with the output matching that of 2015, Avesta news agency reported with reference to Shavkat Bobozoda, the minister of industry and new technology of Tajikistan.
The minister told a news conference on January 25 that it was due to decreasing prices and demand for aluminum in the international market.
The minister did not indicate the amount of aluminum produced in Tajikistan last year.
It was earlier reported that in 2015, Tajikistan produced 139,000 tons of primary aluminum, 14,000 tons more than in 2014.
Bobozoda said that as the price for aluminum falls, its production cost grows, and it is not cost-effective to increase the production of products with decreasing demand and price.
At the same time, the minister said that this year, Tajikistan plans to increase the production and domestic processing of primary aluminum.
He said that Tajikistan’s need for processed aluminum is 30 thousand tons per year, and this year the country plans to increase domestic processing up to 10 thousand tons.
The world prices for Tajikistan’s main export products — aluminum and cotton — are very volatile.
Tajikistan Aluminum Company (TALCO) is the largest state-owned enterprise in Tajikistan with the designed capacity of 500,000 tons of aluminum per year. The company accounts for around 45 percent of Tajikistan’s GDP and 90 percent of the foreign exchange earnings. It is one of the largest taxpayers and plays a pivotal role in the national economy. The company also consumes around 40 percent of all electricity generated in Tajikistan.
