Photo: The Ministry of Justice of Turkmenistan

BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 11. Turkmenistan is ready to cooperate with Afghanistan in beginning practical work on the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan (TAP) electricity transmission project.

This was announced by the press service of the Office of the Prime Minister of Afghanistan, citing the Chairman of Turkmenistan's Halk Maslahaty, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov's remark during a meeting with an Afghan delegation in Herat.

“Turkmenistan is ready to cooperate in beginning practical work on the TAP project,” the publication quoted Berdimuhamedov as saying.

Berdimuhamedov added that several foreign companies have expressed readiness to invest in the project.

In turn, Afghanistan's Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar Akhund called on Turkmenistan to support major economic projects in Afghanistan in the electricity and transportation sectors.

Berdimuhamedov assured the Afghan side that ongoing electricity and railway projects in Afghanistan would be completed on schedule and at an accelerated pace, the publication said.

Meanwhile, Turkmenistan is one of the electricity suppliers to Afghanistan, while the development of cross-border transmission lines is intended to increase the volume and reliability of power supplies. The TAP-500 project envisages a high-voltage transmission line through Afghanistan toward Pakistan, creating a potential additional channel for Turkmen electricity exports and linking the country's power system with markets in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

For Ashgabat, TAP therefore has a broader significance than supplying electricity to a single neighboring country. For Kabul, the project could expand access to electricity while supporting infrastructure development, industrial activity and the country's broader economic connectivity. The renewed focus on practical work suggests that electricity cooperation is gradually moving from agreements toward implementation.