PM Nawaz says CASA-1000 will provide electricity to Pakistan, Afghanistan

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DUSHANBE: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said on Thursday that the Central Asia South Asia-1000 (CASA) project will not only provide electricity to Pakistan and Afghanistan but will also create job opportunities for people in both the countries.

He stated this during the CASA conference held here.

The prime minister said that work on the CASA project was expected to start soon.

He also thanked Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon for hosting the conference.

Earlier, Nawaz also met the prime minister of of Kyrgyzstan and the Afghan president.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Nawaz also discussed matters of mutual interest during an informal conversation.

The prime minister is expected to hold a one-on-one meeting with Ghani later.

CASA-1000 is a project for the supply of electricity from Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan to Pakistan and Afghanistan, which started in 2016. The project is expected to be completed by 2018 and is expected to provide 1,300 megawatts of electricity to Pakistan.

The World Bank had approved a grant of $526.5 million for the project in March 2014.