Tajikistan: Scaling Up Hydropower Sector Climate Resilience

Protecting Tajikstan’s hydropower from climate risks.

Hydropower provides approximately 98% of Tajikistan’s electricity. Tajikistan’s hydropower plants depend on river basins fed by glacial melt water and snowmelt. However, as the climate warms, most climate models predict significant changes in the dynamics of the Tajik precipitation patterns as well as alterations to the country’s glaciers.  The modernisation of a major hydropower facility in Tajikistan will protect it against future climate conditions. The infrastructure of Tajik hydropower facilities dates from the Soviet era and needs renewal to cope with the observed and projected impacts of climate change that is leading to increased hydrological variability. In particular, there is an urgent need to adapt older dams, especially their spillway capacities, to cope with the new climate conditions, including an increase in severe floods.

There are three key components to the project. Best international practices will be adopted, and Tajik hydropower operators trained, to assess and manage climate risks. Institutional capacities and structures for effective transboundary management of hydropower cascades will be developed, within the context of transboundary cooperation and agreements in the region. Finally, climate resilience measures will be integrated into the hydropower facility, including structural rehabilitation to optimize its resilience to climate change.

The project has an estimated lifespan of 40 years.