Uzbekistan Keeps Leading Position in Terms of Energy Projects in Central Asia

The total amount of new energy projects in Central Asia is estimated at about $52.8 billion. The leader in the sector is Uzbekistan, which counts for $21.8 billion (41.2%) of all, according to the Eurasian Development Bank (EDB).

So far, Uzbekistan has allocated $11 billion or 50.5% of its energy investments to the construction of a nuclear plant. About $9.44 billion of these investments will be dedicated to traditional sources of energy, including heat power stations ($6.88 billion) and hydropower stations ($2.55 billion).

«The role of renewable sources of energy in Uzbekistan is limited. Currently, only two projects are being implemented: a solar power station and a wind power station in Navoyi. The government has allocated for these two projects $200 million (0.9%) and $600 million (2.8%) of its investments respectively,» the bank noted in its report.

The EDB noted that both solar and wind power stations are considered in Uzbekistan as something experimental rather than real sources of energy.

The second and the third positions in this rating are held by Kyrgyzstan ($13.1 billion) and Tajikistan ($8.7 billion). Both of these countries have tremendous potential in terms of hydro energy and are trying to take an advantage of it. 

According to the EDB experts, there is no fully available information about energy projects in Turkmenistan. However, the country has been implementing an ambitious project of an international electric transmission line. With a length of 500 kilometers, it will allow supplying energy from Turkmenistan to Afghanistan and Pakistan. The total cost of the project is $5.9 billion, which puts Turkmenistan in the fourth position of the EDB’s rating.

Kazakhstan holds the last position in this rating with just $3.3 billion of investments in the energy sector. As the EDB noted, there are many non-state players in the country. That explains why collecting energy projects data in Kazakhstan is not an easy task. However, in contrast with other Central Asian states, Kazakhstan gives a high priority to renewable sources of energy, according to the EDB’s experts.