British troops complete operation to deliver vital power turbine
2 Sep 08
Around 2,000 British troops in Afghanistan have taken part in a huge convoy to deliver a hydro-electric turbine 180 kilometres by road from Kandahar airfield to Kajaki dam.
Elements of the convoy taking part in Operation OQAB TSUKA, including Mastiff and Viking armoured vehicles, wait in FOB Zeebrugge while the turbines are offloaded
[Picture: Sgt Anthony Boocock, RLC]
The operation, codenamed 'OQAB TSUKA', or 'Eagle's Summit', involved a further 2,000 Afghan National Security Forces and ISAF troops from the US, Canada, Denmark and Australia.
The turbine, once installed and fully operational, will help provide some 1.5 million southern Afghans with much needed electricity and irrigation.
Details of the operation, and the location of the convoy, were kept secret until the turbine reached its destination late last night, in order to protect the soldiers involved in its delivery. The turbine and its various parts had to be transported by road due to their weight, with some parts weighing as much as 29 tonnes each.
Having successfully been delivered to Kajaki, work can now begin on the turbine's installation and the much larger programme of the rejuvenation of the electrical distribution network needed to pass the extra power to areas of Sangin, Musa Qaleh, Kandahar and the provincial capital of Helmand, Lashkar Gah.
Soldiers from 3 Para clear the road to Kajaki in preparation for the convoy during Op OQAB TSUKA
[Picture: Sgt Anthony Boocock RLC]
British troops from various units not only took part in the convoy but cleared the road ahead of any enemy activity and provided security to the convoy using the latest armoured vehicles including Mastiffs, Vikings and Jackals.
Parts of the road, including parts that needed to be built as the convoy moved along it, led through dangerous areas of Helmand province.
The development of the Kajaki dam is funded by USAID. The turbine is capable of producing 18.5MW of economically viable, renewable energy, which will be in addition to the dam's current 16.5MW output.
The additional electricity it will eventually provide will light up classrooms allowing Afghans across southern Afghanistan learn to read and write in evening classes.
Farmers will be able to store their produce in chilled storage, allowing greater export opportunities for the booming wheat markets; and clinics will be able to offer improved health services.
Soldiers from 3 Para drive Jackal vehicles providing security along the convoy route in Kajaki on Operation OQAB TSUKA
[Picture: Sgt Anthony Boocock, RLC]
Lt Col David Reynolds, spokesman for Taskforce Helmand, said:
"This is a significant military operation which demonstrates that our strategy of delivering civil effect is making progress in southern Afghanistan."
"Ultimately success in Afghanistan is about more than defeating the Taliban or the absence of fighting. It's also about creating jobs, security and economic development.
"This operation is the first step in a much larger operation that demonstrates that ISAF's strategy to deliver civil effects is making real progress. A USAID funded project, delivered by the military, where the Afghan people will benefit, and ultimately, we will all benefit. It's why we are in Afghanistan."