KABUL, Aug. 19 (Xinhua) -- The construction of a reservoir dam has begun in east Afghanistan's Paktika province, the Ministry of Energy and Water said in a statement on Monday.
With a cost of 851 million afghanis (about 12 million U.S. dollars), the dam is expected to store 25 million cubic meters of water, irrigate 2,500 hectares of land and generate 935 kw of electricity per hour, the statement said.
The landlocked Afghanistan has been importing electricity from its neighboring countries of Iran, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan to meet domestic demands. ■
