Press Release

Power Upgrades Make Significant Leap in Helmand

New 20MVA transformers to strengthen electricity transmission

Lashkar Gah, Helmand Province  | Sunday, August 10, 2008

USAID efforts to improve the reliability of electricity in Southern Afghanistan achieved a significant milestone recently with the delivery of two 20MVA transformers to Lashkar Gah, Helmand Province. Once installed, the two transformers will improve capacity of the city’s electrical substation to supply the power needs of Lashkar Gah.

The manufacture and delivery of the transformers was made possible through USAID’s Alternative Development Program, a five-year effort aimed at improving the licit income opportunities and well-being of thousands of southern rural families by integrating them into a growing regional economy.

The transformers will be installed at the Lashkar Gah substation, a facility constructed in the 1970s with USAID funding.  The passage of time Lashkar Gah’s increased electrical needs coupled with inadequate maintenance of the facility has made replacement of the main transformers necessary.

The project compliments wider USAID efforts at rehabilitating three electrical power turbines at the Kajaki Hydroelectric Dam Project. The two 20MVA transformers will enable additional power to be delivered to Lashkar Gah once the upgrades at the Kajaki Hydroelectric Power Plant are complete. The transformers have the capacity to convert the electricity delivered from Kajaki to a distribution level compatible with the current standard voltage for Lashkar Gah.

As part of overall power upgrades in the south, USAID is also improving electricity infrastructure in Lashkar Gah through redesigning the electrical distribution system through a combination of GIS images and field surveying. Electrical equipment and materials have already been ordered from a number of suppliers and will be transported to Lashkar Gah within the next few months.