DUSHANBE, January 22, 2010, Asia-Plus  -- In 2010, Tajikistan will buy natural gas from Uzbekistan at the rate of 231 U.S. dollars per 1,000 cubic meters of gas, Saidahmad Sharofiddinov, director general of Tajik state-controlled natural-gas distributor, Tojiktransgaz, told reporters in Dushanbe today.

According to him, gas price will vary quarterly depending on the on world market trends.

Sharofiddinov added that the government had set wholesale gas price for domestic consumers at the rate 263 U.S. dollars at 1,000 cubic meters.  “Retail gas prices will depend on distance, at which consumer is situated from the gas main line,” he said, noting that the gas price for Dushanbe residential customers for this year is set at 1,326 somoni (equivalent to US$310.00) per 1,000 cubic meters of gas.

Sharofiddinov said that Tajikistan plans to import 250 million cubic meters of natural gas from Uzbekistan this year.  “Tajikistan will buy Uzbek gas under a take-or-pay principle.  Under this principle, importer country pays 95 percent of the state volume of natural gas irrespective of the fact whether it receives the stated volumes completely or not,” said Sharofiddinov.  “The conditions remain the same – we will make prepayments every ten days.”

We will recall that last year, Uzbekistan supplied natural gas to Tajikistan at the rate of 240 U.S. dollars per 1,000 cubic meters of gas and Uzbekistan wanted to keep the 2009 gas price, while Tajikistan expected Uzbekistan to decrease its price for gas by 30 percent.