CASA-1000 - The Times Of Central Asia

Viewing results 1 - 6 of 24

Trans-Afghan Rail Corridor

Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and UAE Study CASA Rail Route to Indian Ocean

Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and the United Arab Emirates have agreed to study a proposed railway corridor through Afghanistan to Pakistan’s seaports. The transport ministries of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan and the UAE Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure signed a memorandum on the Central Asia-South Asia (CASA) project on September 30. They agreed to study its technical and economic feasibility and examine possible financing. The memorandum leaves the route and construction timetable open and provides no cost estimate. Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan are both landlocked, and Uzbekistan is one of only two countries worldwide that must cross at least two national borders to reach the open sea. Kazakh authorities estimate that CASA could eventually carry up to 10 million tons of freight a year toward Karachi and Gwadar. Uzbekistan is working with Afghanistan and Pakistan on a railway from Termez through central Afghanistan to Kharlachi on the Pakistani border. The three countries agreed in July 2025 to prepare a feasibility study. Estimates put the cost at around $7 billion, although some have been higher. Kazakhstan is involved in a separate proposal from Torghundi on the Turkmen border through Herat and Kandahar to Spin Boldak near Pakistan. In April 2025, Kazakhstan and Afghanistan signed a protocol of intent, with the Torghundi-Herat railway and a logistics center in Herat envisaged as an initial stage. A new 43-kilometer section of the Khaf-Herat railway connecting Afghanistan with Iran was inaugurated on September 28. Kazakhstan’s Integra Construction KZ helped build it, and Afghan authorities say work is under way on further links from Herat toward the Turkmen and Pakistani borders. A study by the Moscow-based Institute of World Economy and International Relations (IMEMO) found that Afghanistan’s Taliban-led authorities had signed more than 15 railway-related agreements by March 2026. By then, no new mainline track had entered service under those initiatives, and active projects represented less than 1% of the estimated cost of the announced plans. Dauren Ilesaliev, a professor at Tashkent State Transport University, points to the need for steady freight. “Having railway infrastructure does not guarantee that it will work,” Ilesaliev said. Countries along the route would also need to agree on a through-tariff. Kazakhstan’s trade with Afghanistan could provide some of that freight. Bilateral trade reached $581.1 million in January-July 2026, with Kazakh exports accounting for $572.9 million. Flour accounted for $215.6 million and wheat for $122 million of those exports. Kazakhstan has also explored prospective mineral deposits in Afghanistan’s Nuristan Province and is discussing exports of locally assembled vehicles. In an interview with Novastan, Uzbek analyst Aziza Mukhammedova said a corridor’s value to Afghanistan would depend on the jobs and investment it generates there, alongside transit freight. She also cited unresolved financing as a challenge. The UAE sits outside the proposed route, and the memorandum names neither an Emirati company nor a possible investment amount. If a trans-Afghan line is built, Uzbekistan’s China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway could form part of a rail route from China to Pakistan. For Kazakhstan, CASA would provide an Indian Ocean outlet alongside the...

Afghanistan-Pakistan Conflict

Pakistani Airstrikes in Afghanistan Kill at Least 28 Civilians, UN Says

The United Nations says at least 28 civilians were killed and 49 injured in Pakistani airstrikes in several provinces in Afghanistan, as violence continues in the border region following ceasefire efforts that have repeatedly broken down. Women and children were among the casualties in the airstrikes in Paktia, Paktika, and Kunar provinces on Sunday night, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said on Monday. UNAMA said the figures were preliminary and that the toll could increase as hospitals treat the injured. Hamdullah Fitrat, a spokesman for the ruling Taliban in Afghanistan, announced a higher casualty toll than the UN. At least 36 civilians were killed and 163 others were injured, Fitrat said on X. Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said the airstrikes hit militant hideouts and strongholds on the Afghan side of the border, killing at least two dozen militants in retaliation for attacks on targets in Pakistan. Pakistan accuses Afghanistan of providing sanctuary to militants who carry out attacks against Pakistani security forces, an allegation that the Taliban in Afghanistan denies. Besides humanitarian concerns, the ongoing violence is also a concern for Central Asian governments and business groups that are working to develop trade corridors and infrastructure projects linking their region with South Asia. Those projects, which would require close collaboration between Afghanistan and Pakistan, include the Trans-Afghan Railway, the TAPI natural gas pipeline, and the CASA-1000 electricity project.

Bilateral Trade

Tajikistan and Pakistan Agree to Expand Trade and Economic Cooperation

Tajikistan and Pakistan have agreed to deepen trade and economic cooperation following the eighth meeting of their Joint Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, and Technical Cooperation in Dushanbe. The meeting concluded with the signing of a protocol outlining measures to expand bilateral cooperation across a range of sectors, including trade, investment, energy, agriculture, and transport. According to Tajikistan’s Ministry of Energy and Water Resources, the discussions also covered banking, education, science and technology, tourism, youth policy, sports, and communications. Tajikistan’s delegation was led by Minister of Energy and Water Resources Daler Juma, while Pakistan was represented by Federal Minister for Energy Sardar Awais Ahmad Khan Leghari. Officials from both countries said bilateral relations have improved in recent years, supported by growing political engagement and economic cooperation. Trade between the two countries reached $43 million in 2025, according to figures presented during the meeting. Bilateral trade totaled $8.9 million in the first quarter of 2026. The two sides agreed on the need to increase trade volumes by expanding the range of goods exchanged, identifying new areas of cooperation, and developing ties between businesses and investors. Particular attention was given to the CASA-1000 electricity transmission project, which aims to export surplus hydropower from Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan to Afghanistan and Pakistan. Participants described CASA-1000 as a key element of regional energy cooperation and an important platform for expanding economic links between Central and South Asia. The protocol of the commission’s eighth session is expected to help advance future cooperation and support the implementation of joint initiatives. The meeting ended with the signing of the protocol of the commission’s eighth session, which both sides said would help advance future cooperation and support the implementation of joint initiatives.

Green Energy

Tajikistan Links Green Energy Push to Regional Power Exports

Tajikistan is positioning renewable energy and regional electricity trade as central to its long-term economic strategy, as Dushanbe seeks to build on its hydropower base while reducing exposure to climate- and seasonal-supply risks. The message was delivered by Deputy Minister of Energy and Water Resources Sharif Makhmadzoda during a ministerial dialogue on the renewable energy transition in Central Asia. The session, titled International Cooperation for a Sustainable and Diversified Energy Future, was held as part of the Baku Energy Forum. According to Makhmadzoda, the energy transition has become one of Tajikistan’s key long-term development priorities. He said the shift toward renewable energy is not only about meeting international climate commitments, but also about strengthening energy security, supporting industrial development, and improving living standards. Tajikistan continues to place hydropower at the center of its energy strategy. Makhmadzoda noted that approximately 95% of the country’s electricity is generated by hydroelectric power plants, making the republic one of the world’s leading producers of green energy. Makhmadzoda also stressed the need to diversify the country’s energy mix, citing climate change, glacier melt, seasonal changes in river flows, and rising domestic electricity demand. Against this backdrop, the government sees modernization of the energy sector and the expansion of other renewable energy sources as increasingly important. Particular attention is being paid to the development of solar and wind power generation. Regional cooperation was another key theme of Makhmadzoda’s remarks. According to the deputy minister, Tajikistan’s renewed participation in the Central Asian Unified Energy System could play an important role in creating a regional market for clean electricity. CASA-1000 is designed to carry up to 1,300 megawatts of surplus electricity from Central Asia to high-demand markets in South Asia, linking Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan with Afghanistan and Pakistan. The comments underline a wider challenge for Tajikistan. Hydropower gives the country one of the region’s cleanest power systems, but it also leaves the energy sector heavily exposed to water availability, climate pressures, and seasonal demand peaks.

Energy

Kyrgyzstan Secures €9 Million in EIB Funding for CASA-1000 Energy Project

The Kyrgyz Ministry of Finance has approved the signing of a €9 million financing agreement with the European Investment Bank (EIB) to support the ongoing implementation of the CASA-1000 regional energy project. Under the terms of the agreement, the EIB will provide the Kyrgyz government with a 29-year loan, including an eight-year grace period, at an interest rate of 3.6% per annum. The funds will be used to complete infrastructure work under CASA-1000, a cross-border initiative aimed at exporting surplus summer electricity from Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to Afghanistan and Pakistan. According to the Ministry of Finance, the funds will be re-lent to the state-owned National Electric Grid of Kyrgyzstan (NEGK), the country's main electricity transmission operator and the contractor responsible for CASA-1000 infrastructure in Kyrgyzstan. Officials stated that the loan will not place additional pressure on the state budget. Repayment will be made through revenue generated by NEGK from electricity exports to South Asia. In line with the Kyrgyz Constitution, the agreement requires parliamentary approval by the Jogorku Kenesh before the funds can be disbursed to a dedicated Ministry of Finance account. The CASA-1000 project is now in an advanced stage of implementation. Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov and Tajik President Emomali Rahmon recently attended the inauguration of the 480-kilometer Datka-Sughd high-voltage transmission line, which connects the two countries’ power systems. This event marked the completion of all CASA-1000 infrastructure in Kyrgyzstan. Construction continues in southern Tajikistan, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. The full CASA-1000 corridor spans four countries, with a total transmission line length of 1,400 kilometers and an estimated total cost of $1.1 billion. Initial electricity deliveries to Afghanistan and Pakistan are scheduled for 2027.

Energy Infrastructure

Kyrgyz Authorities Upgrade Energy Infrastructure in Conflict-Affected Batken Region

Authorities in Kyrgyzstan have modernized more than 600 kilometers of high-voltage power lines in the Batken region and launched construction of a new power substation near the Tajik border, an area impacted by armed clashes in 2022. According to the National Electric Grid of Kyrgyzstan (NEGK), stable and uninterrupted power supply has been ensured across all settlements in the region during the first half of 2025. Major repairs extended to remote mountainous areas prone to natural hazards, where energy workers replaced over 2,500 outdated porcelain insulators, enhancing grid reliability. Much of the infrastructure was located in landslide-prone and difficult-to-access terrain. “To prevent natural disasters, particularly floods, and ensure the safety of electrical equipment, we reinforced overhead power lines using gabions, stone materials, wire ties, and specialized equipment,” the NEGK reported. The Batken region experienced prolonged blackouts following the 2022 Kyrgyz-Tajik border conflict, which left 32 settlements without electricity. Although power was restored within a year, much of the infrastructure had not been updated for decades. Local officials now say outages should become rare. Construction has also begun on a new substation valued at $800,000 near the Tajik border, with completion expected by October 2025. The facility will supply electricity to an 800-hectare area, including the newly built village of Zhan Dostuk. The village is designated for residents displaced from areas transferred to Tajikistan under an intergovernmental agreement. Power will also extend to the planned city of Batken City, newly constructed state-owned mortgage housing, a large Russian-language school, and a stadium with a capacity of 10,000 spectators. Additionally, the region remains a key hub for the CASA-1000 project, which aims to export electricity from Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to Pakistan via Afghanistan, an initiative that officials say will strengthen energy infrastructure across Central Asia.