DUSHANBE, December 16, 2015, Asia-Plus -- Tajikistan has produced more than one million tons of coal this year, which is 130,000 tons more than last year, according to the Ministry of Industry and New Technologies (MoINT).

An official source at a MoINT says Tajik coalminers are currently producing up to 3,000 tons of coal per day.

According to him, 653,000 tons of coal have been sold over the first nine months of this year.  

Coal production has reportedly increased due to a shift in the country’s industrial enterprises from more expensive natural gas and electricity to more economical coal for heating and other needs.

Since 2007, more than 150 industrial enterprises in Tajikistan have been shifted to coal, the source said. More than 160 coal-fired enterprises now operate in Tajikistan.

Fifteen coal-producing enterprises now operate in Tajikistan.  Fon-Yaghnob, Ziddi, Nazar Ayloq, Shourob, and Sayod are Tajikistan’s largest coal fields.