The International Energy Agency (IEZ) has released a new roadmap that examines ways Tajikistan could maximise the potential value of its surplus hydropower through cross-border trading, helping to advance renewable energy throughout central Asia.

The IEA developed its energy policy Roadmap on Cross-Border Electricity Trading for Tajikistan as part of its work through the EU4Energy Programme. The Roadmap is being launched today as part of a Cross-Border Electricity Trading Workshop, featuring input from the Tajik Ministry of Water and Energy Resources, as well as the Asian Development Bank and United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific.

The Roadmap examines tangible steps Tajik policy makers can take to facilitate effective cross-border integration of electricity markets, benefiting not only Tajikistan, but also the surrounding region.

Some of these steps include: Tajikistan and its neighbours investing in developments of their regulatory and market institutions; refurbishment and upgrade work on Tajikistan’s facilities to improve technical flexibility, which would increase its ability to provide additional ancillary services to its neighbours in the regional market as they ramp up the share of variable renewables in their power generation mix.

Tajikistan’s National Development Strategy has set out a goal to more than triple its electricity exports to at least 10 terawatt-hours annually by 2030 – equivalent to about half the amount of electricity it generates overall today – which would bring much needed revenue to the country’s state-owned utility.