Taliban utility says just 40 percent of population has electricity

KABUL (Amu tv): Only about 40 percent of Afghans have access to electricity, according to the Taliban-run national utility, which has warned that the country could face deeper shortages this winter as imports decline.

Abdul Bari Omar, the head of Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat, said on Tuesday that Afghanistan relies heavily on imported power, much of it from Tajikistan. But officials in Tajikistan have informed the company that they will reduce electricity exports by about 25 percent this winter because of domestic supply problems.

“Currently, Kabul and several provinces receive power from Tajikistan,” Omar said. “Based on the information we have, this winter we will receive 25 percent less than last year.” Tajikistan typically supplies about 150 megawatts of electricity annually to Afghanistan.

The shortages come as demand in Afghanistan has been rising. The utility said it connected new customers this year, distributing an additional 80 megawatts of electricity to households and businesses, which has strained the grid. Kabul residents have reported more frequent blackouts in recent weeks, with some saying the outages are longer and more severe than in previous years.

At the same briefing, the Taliban-controlled state oil and gas company reported that Afghanistan produces only 7 to 8 percent of its annual fuel needs domestically. Mohammad Nasir Rahimi, the company’s chief executive, said Afghanistan imports roughly 3.5 million tons of oil each year, while local production is limited to 600 to 700 tons a day.

Taliban had previously awarded a contract to a Chinese company to develop the Amu Darya oil field, the country’s largest, but the deal was terminated in June after nearly three years of delays and limited progress. Taliban officials said they were seeking new investors to revive the project.