The Rogun project in Tajikistan began to be implemented in 1976, when the Soviet Gosstroy approved the relevant documents. The Tashkent Hydroproject was responsible for the development of the plan. From the very beginning it became clear that the construction of this hydroelectric station would be extremely difficult. The station was to be built in the difficult natural conditions of Central Asia.
Project Challenges
The Rogun hydroelectric power station was threatened and threatened by several factors. Firstly, it is the high seismicity of the region. Small earthquakes occur here regularly. They are not terrible for hydropower plants, but if the unexpected cataclysm turns out to be too strong (as it was in the distant 1911), then the most important element of the dam, its target, will be under the threat of destruction.
Secondly, builders had to punch construction tunnels in fragile and loose rocks. Thirdly, under the bottom of the Vakhsh river there is a fault, which contains rock salt. Dam can cause water to seep and erode. The designers of the Rogun HPP had to consider all these factors. The Soviet leaders did not want to abandon the construction of the station, since it had to play an important economic role in the life of Central Asia.
Soviet unfinished
Although the construction of the Rogun hydropower plant was notable for many difficulties, hydro-builders managed to find solutions that helped mitigate all the sharp corners. Water was deemed necessary to be fed under high pressure around the rock salt formation, while a saturated solution would be supplied to the formation itself. This decision was the most acceptable in the current situation. Thanks to him, it was supposed to avoid salt dissolution.
Earthquakes are terrible disasters. Every person in Tajikistan knows this firsthand. Rogun hydroelectric station was designed with the expectation that it will be able to withstand any earthquake. For this, the dam body was made loose and complexly structured. Loam and pebble were used for the core. This was done so that soft rocks fill the voids and cracks that occur during an earthquake.
Beginning of work
The first builders arrived in Rogun in the fall of 1976. Platforms for their work were built at an altitude of more than 1 thousand meters. The place chosen for the Rogun hydroelectric power station was quite deaf at that time. The distance between the construction site and the nearest railway station was 80 kilometers. The equipment needed for the new infrastructure was supplied from all over the country. Hydroturbines and transformers were manufactured in Ukraine, while in distant Sverdlovsk they made hydrogenerators. More than 300 Soviet enterprises were responsible for the composition of the Rogun HPP structures.
The city of Rogun, in which the station builders settled, was built from scratch. High-rise buildings, a kindergarten, a school - all this was not here before the ambitious energy project began. The buildings were heated by electric boiler houses.
The builders began the construction of a hydroelectric station by punching tunnels in loose fragile rocks, where there was a lot of pressure. After cutting and roughing, these tunnels were carefully concreted. In total, it was planned to break through 63 kilometers. The builders walked towards each other from two sides. Felling was carried out in the middle. For this, additional mines were used.
Tunnels and Dam
For ten years, the Rogun hydropower plant, which was in its infancy, whose construction photos began to get into Soviet newspapers, has not changed much since the tunneling was conducted all this time. To speed up work and save money, it was decided not to use classic mining trucks, but huge conveyors. According to experts, in this way the treasury managed to save about 75-85 million rubles.
The construction of the dam began in 1987. On December 27, the Vakhsh River was closed. In 1993, the height of the lintel was already 40 meters, and the length of the tunnels reached 21 kilometers. The transformer and engine rooms were almost completely ready. However, the work could not be completed. Due to the collapse of the USSR, the emergence of economic problems and other factors, the construction site was mothballed.
1993 accident
In 1993, the Rogun hydroelectric station experienced a serious accident. A few years after the closure of the Vakhsh river bed, a building bridge was eroded. The reason for this was the most powerful floods. As a result, incomplete drainage tunnels and engine room were flooded.
Of course, any hydroelectric power station must cope with the loads, even if they are caused by unprecedented floods. During the trial, it turned out that a catastrophe would not have happened if it had not been for the organizational miscalculations of the leadership responsible for the construction. Today, the Rogun Hydroelectric Power Station (August 2016 became another month of active preparatory work for it) has other owners, but in 1987 Tajikglovenergo was the formal customer. There was a conflict between this structure and the construction directorate. As a result, his Ministry of Energy of the USSR removed the people who were previously responsible for meeting deadlines from work. Confusion and confusion led to the fact that the river was closed too early. The organizers were in a hurry, fearing a deadline, but time showed that such a rush was a mistake.
Similar incidents
Rogun hydroelectric power station is most often compared with another hydroelectric power station in Tajikistan - Nurek. This hydroelectric power station was launched in 1979. During operation, several minor accidents occurred on it.
Much more painful is the comparison of the Rogun HPP with the Sayano-Shushenskaya. The accident that occurred at the last was of a pronounced technogenic character. Then 75 people died. The builders and contractors of the Rogun hydroelectric power station are convinced that they have taken into account the experience of these disasters, and the hydroelectric station will no longer face emergency situations, as happened in 1993.
Modern stage
Due to the difficult situation in Tajikistan, the Rogun Hydroelectric Power Station has been frozen for ten years. Only in 2004, the country's authorities concluded an agreement with the Russian Rusal to continue work on the construction of the station. At the company's expense, the flooded halls were drained. However, further cooperation between the parties ran into serious problems. The company and the government could not agree on the technical aspects of the project, including the height of the dam and its design type. In 2007, the contract with Rusal was terminated.
After that, the Tajik authorities decided to complete the construction of the hydroelectric power station, asking the World Bank for help. In 2010, an agreement was signed on international expertise of the project. A Swiss company became its contractor. An open joint-stock company, Rogun Hydroelectric Power Station, was established. Today it is it that continues the construction of a hydroelectric power station.
Uzbekistan's discontent
The nearly completed Rogun Hydroelectric Power Station, with a capacity of 3,600 megawatts, is a hydroelectric power station of the dam type. The building has six hydraulic units. After completion, the dam forms a new reservoir. The height of the hydroelectric station is 335 meters (if the project is implemented, the hydroelectric power station will become the highest in the world). According to experts, the cost of construction is more than $ 2 billion.
The state of the Rogun hydroelectric station today is criticized from many different sides. The main complaints come down to choosing the location of the dam, that is, the risks that were known back in Soviet times. However, those responsible are convinced that mudflow and landslide processes, seismic activity and other natural factors will not harm hydroelectric power stations in any way.
Most criticism is heard from the authorities of Uzbekistan (the Vakhsh river is a tributary of the Amu Darya flowing through the territory of Uzbekistan). This means that a violation of one runoff can affect the environmental situation in a neighboring republic. The government of Uzbekistan several times expressed its disagreement with international commissions, which stated that the hydroelectric power station can still be completed.
Environmental factor
Possible violations of the operation or construction of the Rogun hydroelectric power station may cause environmental and social risks. In Uzbekistan, where the Amu Darya flows, the situation is exacerbated by the drying up of the Aral Sea, caused by improper use of natural resources in Soviet times.
The construction of dams always helps to accelerate soil erosion. Flooding of lands located on the territory of the proposed reservoir will create even more problems. Changing the river flow regime will affect not only the course, but also the temperature regime. The reservoirs are silty, which leads to the appearance of organic and mineral sediments. They enrich the soil, but impair fertility in the lower reaches of the river (that is, in Uzbekistan).
Atom and consortium
Disputes give rise to proposals for alternatives for solving the region’s energy and environmental problems. So, Uzbekistan even tried to attract Russia and the European Union to participate in a new project to build a common nuclear power plant, which could cover the needs of several countries of Central Asia (including even Pakistan, Afghanistan and India). So far, this initiative has failed.
It goes without saying that in such a global issue, officials make decisions. However, real experts, primarily environmentalists, believe that the conflict around the station is too politicized. The problem is that each country treats its river as a property, while all the water resources of Central Asia are interconnected within a single river system leading to the Aral Sea. That is why environmentalists are proposing to create an energy consortium, which, in addition to Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, should include Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Afghanistan. However, so far no real steps have been taken in this direction.
Rogun and Sarez
Some opponents of the construction of the Rogun power plant suggest directing resources to another project related to Lake Sarez. It arose in 1911 after a catastrophic earthquake and rock collapse, as a result of which a natural dam formed that blocked the Bartang River bed. The lake also belongs to the Amu Darya basin. If for some reason (for example, due to a repeated earthquake) the natural dam collapses, a colossal wave will reach the Aral Sea, causing irreparable damage to many cities of three countries at once (Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan).
Many environmentalists propose using the resources of Lake Sarez for energy purposes, thus saving the republic from deficit and ending the conflict with its neighbors. Rogun, hydroelectric power station (2016 was her anniversary), Sarez - all these objects continue to cause controversy and heated debate. Supporters of the Sarez project argue that for a hundred years there has already been an environmental balance, which means that its water resources can be used without harming nature. In the case of Rogun, the environment has yet to experience “stress”, even if the launch occurs according to all the rules.
The importance of hydroelectric power
For many years, Tajikistan has been experiencing serious problems with hydrocarbon energy resources. In particular, numerous conflicts with Uzbekistan and the “gas wars” of neighbors are associated with this problem.
That is why the Rogun hydroelectric power station is so important for the republic, which is experiencing a constant energy shortage. The project itself is protected by Tajikistan itself. Rogun Hydroelectric Power Station (2016 - the 40th year of construction, along with breaks) remains the fix idea for a poor country, pouring all its resources into it.