According to information, Kyrgyzstan's debt to "RusHydro" for the Upper Naryn Cascade HPP project has exceeded 51 million dollars, which is almost double the initially planned 37 million dollars due to accrued interest.
In September 2012, Kyrgyzstan and Russia signed agreements on the construction and operation of the Upper Naryn Cascade HPP and the Kambar-Ata-1 HPP, as reported by Interfax.
However, in January 2016, Kyrgyzstan unilaterally terminated the agreements, citing the lack of financing solutions for the projects. Furthermore, the Kyrgyz side did not agree to the proposed increase in loan costs for the construction of the HPPs by the Russian side.
At that time, RusHydro's investments amounted to 37 million dollars, and the company demanded their return, appealing to the arbitration court in The Hague. The international court ruled in favor of RusHydro, continuing to accrue interest.
After that, the President of Kyrgyzstan, Sadyr Japarov, announced the sending of a delegation with Daniyar Amangeldiev to Moscow to discuss ways to resolve the debt issue.
The Upper Naryn Cascade HPP is a suspended project for the construction of a hydroelectric complex on the upper reaches of the Naryn River, near the city of Naryn in Kyrgyzstan.
The project includes four hydroelectric power stations: Akbulun HPP, Naryn HPP-1, Naryn HPP-2, and Naryn HPP-3, which were planned to be built using a dam-derivation scheme with small reservoirs.
The total installed capacity of the cascade was supposed to be 237.7 MW, with an average annual output of 942.4 million kWh. Construction work was carried out from 2013 to 2015 according to an intergovernmental agreement between Kyrgyzstan and Russia.
The launch of the first hydro unit was scheduled for 2016, and the completion of construction was set for 2019. Now, however, the Russian state company "RusHydro," which owns 50% in the joint venture with Kyrgyzstan, has decided to sell the non-core asset.
The company seeks to recover its 37 million dollars, but so far no buyers for the unfinished project have been found.
