DUSHANBE, November 20, 2013, Asia-Plus -- Tajikistan’s lower house (Majlisi Namoyandagon) of parliament has endorsed amendments proposed by the government to the law on the national budget for 2013.

A regular sitting of the fifth session of the Majlisi Namoyandagon of the fourth convocation, presided over by its head, Shukurjon Zuhurov, was held on November 20.

Presenting the bill requiring amendments to the country’s law on the national budget for 2013, Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Trade, Ms. Gulchehra Bozorova, noted that the amendments, in particular, provide for exemption of the Tajik-Chinese joint venture, TOJCHIN, from paying value added tax and customs duties on equipment and building materials delivered to the country for construction of a cement plant near the Vahdat Township.

According to her, TOJCHIN will be exempted from paying a total of 9.8 million U.S. dollars.

We will recall that the construction of a new cement plant with annual capacity of 600,000 tons officially began at the Chormaghzak Pass, Vahdat district on October 1.

The cost of the project is more than 20 million U.S. dollars.  The plant that is expected to be built in eight months will create some 300 new jobs.

A Tajik-Chinese joint venture, TOJCHIN, is building the new cement plant.  In the near future, they reportedly plan to increase the investment volumes to 50 million U.S. dollars and to raise the plant’s annual capacity to 1.5 million tons.