Afghanistan's electricity body reports blackout in Kabul

Electricity supply from Uzbekistan to several Afghan provinces and capital city Kabul has been stopped due to technical problems, Afghanistan's state power company, Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat (DABS), said on Wednesday.

This comes a few days after reports said that Afghanistan's electricity body is set to sell the estates of its debtors in a bid to pay nearly USD 62 million worth of power bills to the central Asian countries.

The technical issues emerged in the northern Afghan province of Baghlan, Sputnik reported citing DABS. "The technical staff is working to resolve this issue as soon as possible," the statement read.

This development comes as news reports say that Afghanistan's capital city Kabul could dive into darkness due to non-payment of dues of Central Asian electricity suppliers by new Taliban rulers.

Electricity imports from neighbouring countries like Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan account for 80 per cent of the country's power consumption.

After the Taliban took over Kabul in August and the Afghan government fell. The outfit took power over the state energy utility, inheriting its debts, but have so far failed to pay off the creditors.

Earlier this month, the former head of DABS, Daud Noorzai, said that the supplies of electricity to the Afghan capital province of Kabul could be cut off by winter as the Taliban did not pay the bills to the Central Asian energy suppliers.

Meanwhile, Safiullah Ahamdzai, the acting head of DABAS, said that they will implement the plan and will pay off all the debts to prevent cutting electricity by exporting countries, The Khaama Press News Agency reported.

( With inputs from ANI )