KABUL - The Afghan Minister of Energy and Water and a Turkish company on Tuesday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the extension of the Kajaki Dam in Helmand.
The hydropower dam currently produces 33 megawatts of electricity but once extended it will provide up to 150 megawatts.
The minister, Ali Ahmad Osmani, said that once extended the dam will provide more energy than the new Salma Dam in Herat.
The Kajaki Dam is on the Helmand River, 160 kms from Kandahar. It provides both electricity to the area and irrigates farmland.
The extension of dam would increase electricity output by up to 100 more megawatts – with the aim being to eventually have it produce 150 megawatts of electricity.
Osmani said the reservoir capacity of the dam would also be expanded by a billion cubic meters.
This comes just days after President Ashraf Ghani and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi together inaugurated the newly completed Salma Dam in Herat.
The dam was built and funded by India at a cost of $300 million USD.(Tolonews)