Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- Uzbekistan raised US$2.3 billion from financial institutions for construction of a plant for production of synthetic fuel in Kashkadarya region using gas-to-liquids (GTL) technology.

On 15 December, the project company Uzbekistan GTL, Uzbekneftegaz and 11 international financial institutions, organizations and commercial banks in Tashkent signed financial documents. Organizations represent countries such as China, South Korea, Japan, Russia and European countries.

The event was attended by representatives of the State Development Bank of China, the Export-Import Bank of Korea (KEXIM), the Korean Trade Insurance Corporation K-SURE, Gazprombank, the Russian Agency for Insurance of Export Credits and Investments (EXIAR), Credit Suisse Bank, Japanese banks MUFG , SMBC and Mizuho, as well as international project consultants, representatives of the embassies of China, Russia, South Korea and Uzbekistan, the management of Uzbekneftegaz, ministries and departments, the Fund for Reconstruction and Development of Uzbekistan, representatives of contractor and others.

As part of the signed documents, China will allocate more than US$1 billion, South Korea - US$600 million, and the remaining nine creditors - about US$700 million.

Chairman of the Board of Uzbekneftegaz Bahrom Ashrafkhanov noted that the GTL project in its scale is one of the largest investment projects not only in Uzbekistan, but also in the region. He added that the project is aimed at expanding the capacity of Uzbekistan for deep processing of natural gas, drastically reducing imports of hydrocarbons.

The project implementation, including engineering works, equipment procurement, was completed by 64%, while construction works were performed only by approximately 23%.

OLTIN YO’L GTL will be one of the most advanced factories in the world for production of high-quality fuels, ensuring a clean future in the field of transportation, and contributing to the growth and development of the economy of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

The total cost of the project is estimated at US$3.6 billion, of which US$2.3 billion represents a consortium of international financial institutions, US$740 million - the Fund for Reconstruction and Development of Uzbekistan and US$570 million are own funds of Uzbekneftegaz.

It is expected that the plant will be commissioned in 2020. The project will ensure the annual import substitution of petroleum products in the amount of up to 1.5 million tonnes worth more than US$1 billion.

The plant will process 3.6 billion cubic meters of gas and produce 1.5 million tonnes of synthetic liquid fuel of the Euro-5 standard, including 311,000 tonnes of jet fuel, 743,000 tonnes of diesel fuel, 431,000 tonnes of naphtha and 53,000 tonnes of liquefied gas.

General contractors are Hyundai Engineering (Republic of Korea), Hyundai Engineering and Construction and Enter Engineering (Singapore).

The plant is being built according to the technology of licensors - the world’s leading companies Sasol (South Africa), Haldor Topsoe (Denmark) and Chevron (USA). Construction work is carried out by contractors - companies Hyundai Engineering Co. Ltd. and Hyundai Engineering and Construction Co., Ltd (South Korea) and Enter Engineering Pte. Ltd. (Singapore).