Afghanistan's DABS ties up with Tata Power

The Afghanistan government has brought on board India's utility major Tata Power for distribution, transmission and generation of power in the war-ravaged South-Asian country.

The Afghanistan government-run power distribution firm, Da Afghanistan Bresha Sherkat (DABS), Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) during the second India-Afghanistan International Trade and Investment show.

The four-day event, which kick started Wednesday, is aimed at bolstering trade besides showcasing business and investment opportunities in Afghanistan.

Tata power is looking to tap "huge" opportunities in Afghanistan, where only 35 per cent of the people have access to electricity, said Praveer Sinha, chief executive officer and managing director, Tata Power.

"When we look at the power sector and how we can play a role in Afghanistan, we see huge opportunity. The country unfortunately does not have universal access of power as just about 35 per cent of the people have access to power and that also in the four main cities," said Sinha.

That is an area Tata Power would like to work very closely with the state-government power distribution company as well as local enterpreneurs, he added.

He noted that Afghanistan has huge natural resources, which have the potential to make it a net power exporter.

The rivers in Afghanistan have the potential to produce 20,000-25,000 MW of electricity on a conservative estimate, according to Sinha.

Also, Afghanistan has the potential to produce around 200 GW of power from solar energy besides another 66 GW of from wind energy, he added.

"(Therefore) when we look at Afghanistan in the next few years, it will be net exporter of power," said Sinha.