The Turkmenistan–Afghanistan–Pakistan (TAP) power transmission project is moving into an active implementation phase, emerging as an infrastructure backbone that runs in parallel with the TAPI gas pipeline.
The development of an energy bridge between Central and South Asia will not only expand Turkmenistan’s electricity export potential but also help lay the groundwork for Afghanistan’s economic stabilization.
According to the TAP International Power Projects Directorate of the Ministry of Energy of Turkmenistan, the project is planned to be implemented in three stages. It envisages the construction of high-voltage transmission lines rated at 220 kV to Afghanistan and 500 kV to Pakistan.
The development of such large-scale energy infrastructure will also create opportunities for electricity transit to other countries in the future.
The project’s main source of electricity is the 1,574 MW combined-cycle power plant at the Mary State Power Plant, commissioned in 2018.
Most of the work on the Turkmen section of the TAP project has already been completed. In August 2021, a 259-kilometre, double-circuit 220 kV transmission line was completed from the Mary Power Plant to the Turkmen-Afghan border.
Another important step during that period was the construction of two double-circuit 220 kV transmission lines: a 35-kilometre line from the new Serhetabat substation to the Gushgy substation, and a 46.5-kilometre line from the Serhetabat substation to the Turkmen-Afghan border.
These lines completed the power-system loop in Mary province and prepared the infrastructure for interconnection with Afghanistan’s power grid.
Turkmenistan’s energy cooperation with Afghanistan does not end there. In 2021, the existing Serhetabat–Herat transmission line was upgraded, enabling electricity to be supplied at 220 kV and improving the efficiency of the system.
A key milestone in the first stage of TAP was the commissioning of the Nur-ul-Jihad substation in Herat Province on 11 September 2024. The facility was built by the Türkmenenergogurluşyk concern [Turkmen energy construction] at the request of Afghanistan’s Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat (DABS).
The next steps include further development of the infrastructure on the Afghan side. The Nur-ul-Jihad substation is to undergo additional modernization. Under the project concept, a 200 MVA synchronous compensator is planned to be installed at the facility.
In addition, the Afghan side is constructing an 80-kilometre 220 kV transmission line in Herat Province linking the Pul-e-Hashemi, Nur-ul-Jihad and 24 Hoot substations.
Work is currently under way to further strengthen the project’s legal and contractual framework, with a corresponding roadmap being prepared.
The TAP project is being advanced within the framework of agreements reached at the highest level. On 10 August 2026, National Leader of the Turkmen people and Chairman of the Halk Maslahaty of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov paid a working visit to Mary Region and travelled to Afghanistan’s Herat Province, where he held talks with Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, Afghanistan’s Acting Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs.
The talks focused on the coordinated advancement of several strategic projects, including the TAPI gas pipeline, the TAP power transmission line, an optical-fibre communications link, and the Serhetabat–Herat transport and logistics corridor. The sides noted that the systematic implementation of these initiatives is enhancing the region’s economic appeal and attracting growing interest from foreign investors and international financial institutions willing to participate in infrastructure development.
Following the meeting, the sides signed a memorandum of understanding in the gas sector, reaffirming their commitment to deeper energy and investment integration between Central and South Asia. ///nCa, 22 August 2026