Taliban deputy chief minister Abdul Ghani Baradar on Thursday launched work on the construction of a 40-megawatt solar power project in Logar Province, a $36 million initiative that he said would help ease chronic electricity shortages and create jobs in the area.
The project comes as only 40 percent of Afghanistan’s population has access to electricity, according to Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat.
The project is located in Mohammad Agha District, Logar Province.
Addressing a ceremony on the event, Baradar described the venture as a “valuable opportunity” for both provincial and national economic growth.
Once completed, the solar plant is expected to supply electricity to about 40,000 households and provide power to the Mohammad Agha Industrial Park, Taliban said in a statement.
The project includes two components: a 40-megawatt solar facility estimated at $28 million and a 126 MVA substation with transmission lines costing $7.6 million. Construction is expected to take 18 months.
Baradar said Afghanistan’s reliance on imported electricity, which costs the country hundreds of millions of dollars annually, reflects years of underinvestment in domestic energy resources. He emphasized that renewable projects, along with improved water management, are central to the Taliban administration’s plans for long-term development.
This also comes as the country’s power distributor, Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat, announced this week that the imported power from Tajikistan will have a 25 percent decrease in the coming winter, further exacerbating power shortages, particularly in Kabul.
