Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Kazakhstan to Jointly Operate Bahri Tojik Reservoir

Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan have reached an agreement to jointly operate the Bahri Tojik Reservoir during the summer of 2025, formalizing their cooperation through a trilateral protocol.

In Dushanbe, on the sidelines of the High-Level International Conference on Glacier Preservation, a trilateral meeting was held between Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan representatives, The Caspian Post reports citing Uzbek media. The talks were attended by Tajikistan’s Minister of Energy and Water Resources, Daler Juma, Uzbekistan’s Minister of Water Management, Shavkat Khamrayev, and Kazakhstan’s Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation, Nurzhan Nurzhigitov.

According to Tajikistan’s Ministry of Energy and Water Resources, the parties discussed current issues of trilateral cooperation in water resource management, including the sustainable use of reservoirs and the operational regime of major hydraulic structures. Special attention was given to coordinating efforts for the efficient and equitable distribution of water resources in the region amid climate change.

Following the negotiations, a trilateral protocol was signed to coordinate the operational regime of the Tajik Sea (Bahri Tojik) Reservoir for the summer period, from June to August 2025. The document provides for the joint operation of the water facility, considering all parties’ interests and aiming to ensure water security and the rational use of resources in the region.

According to the report “Analysis of the Water Management Situation in Syrdarya and Amudarya River Basins for the 2024-2025 Non-Growing Season”, the inflow of water into the Bahri Tojik Reservoir from October 2024 to March 2025 amounted to 12.32 km³ - 1.04 km³ above the schedule approved by the Syrdarya Basin Water Organization.

The water release from the reservoir also exceeded forecasts, totaling 11.13 km³, which is 1.23 km³ above the planned amount. As a result, by the end of the non-growing season, the water volume in the reservoir reached 3.5 km³. According to projections, the total water inflow into the Syrdarya basin during the 2025 growing season is expected to be 25.77 km³ - about 87% of the standard norm (with the normative indicator set at 29.49 km³).

Based on the protocol of the 89th meeting of the Interstate Coordinating Water Management Commission, held on April 5, 2025, the water withdrawal limit for Kazakhstan (via the Dustlik Canal) was set at 909 million m³, for Kyrgyzstan - 270 million m³, for Tajikistan - 1,905 million m³, and for Uzbekistan - 8,800 million m³.