DUSHANBE, December 8, Asia-Plus - Concreting works in two drainage tunnels of Sangtuda-1 power plant are nearing completion and all preparations for damming the Vakhsh River will probably end within three or four days, Aleksandr Ryabikin, deputy director of the management for the construction of Sangtuda-1 power plant on the Vakhsh River, told Asia-Plus today.  

According to him, “a ceremony of damming the river may possibly be held on December 12.”   “A government commission led by the First Deputy Prime Minister Asadullo Ghulomov has been to the site for damming the river for four days and familiarized itself with a progress of works there,” Ryabikin said, noting that the Russian and Tajik side have agreed that it is necessary to speed up the work.  

Ryabikin added that December 12 is just an approximate date to dam the river.  “Everything depends on whether we will manage to complete concreting works in small areas of the tunnels by the date fixed,” said Ryabikin,  “Thousands of builders are working day and night.”

“We have already prepared 400 tons of explosives for damming the river and there is no sense in postponing the ceremony to February,” the deputy director said.  

He also noted that a volume of water passing through the Norak station’s generators has been increased to 600 cubic meters per second, which is 50 percent more than two days ago.  

Meanwhile, according to the Tajik Ministry of Energy and Industry, the issue of fixing the date of damming the river will be resolved today at a meeting of representatives from the country’s government with representatives from Russia’s Unified Energy Systems (RAO YeES), which funds the construction of Sangtuda-1 power plant.