Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- Uzbekistan has increased natural-gas supplies to Tajikistan, allowing Tojiktransgaz (Tajik state natural-gas distributor) to resume gas supplies to the Dushanbe cement plant. Shavkat Shoimov, the deputy director of the State Unitary Enterprise Tojiktransgaz, told Asia-Plus that Uzbekistan increased the daily supply of natural gas to Tajikistan from 6,000 to 20,000 cubic meters on Monday. The additional natural-gas volumes were supplied to industrial enterprises, including the State Unitary Enterprise Tojicement (Dushanbe cement plant). As it had been reported earlier, operations at Dushanbe cement plant were suspended on June 16 following stoppage of gas supplies and the plant administration was forced to ask more than 1,000 workers to take unpaid vacations. Tojikcement’s administration asked the government to take into account the poor state of Tojikcement, suffering under the global financial and economic crisis, and help resume gas supplies to the Dushanbe cement plant as soon as possible. Tojikcement now owes more than US$2 million to Tojiktransgaz and the Tojikcement managers say that the plant is unable to settle the debt at this time. In the meantime, many local enterprises, including the Roghun power plant, now owe considerable funds to Tojikcement, which is currently cement for a number of facilities of the nationwide significance such as the Roghun as well as Sangtuda-1 and Sangtuda-2 power plants. Uzbekistan halved natural-gas shipments to Tajikistan (from 12,000 to 6,000 cubic meters) on June 15 due to the roughly US$17 million in arrears that Tojiktransgaz now owes to Uzbekistan. Tojiktransgaz officials say that to ensure regular operations in the country’s economy and properly provision of residential customers with natural gas Tajikistan needs more than 100,000 cubic meters of natural gas per day. They say Tojiktransgaz now does not have money to pay off its debt to Uztransgaz because its debtors have not repaid their debts. Among the worst nonpayers are Barqi Tojik power holding that now owes US$9.6 million, Tojikcement (US$2.3 million), Somonsughdgaz (US$2.2 million), and Sughd-based empties-producing enterprise, Lal (US$1.1 million) -- Talco currently owes US$700,000 to Tojiktransgaz.