Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) —  Today, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev participated in a ceremony to launch new capacities and construction projects in Uzbekistan’s energy sector at the International Congress Center.

In his speech, the head of state emphasized the historic nature of the event, as new energy capacities worth US$3.7 billion are being launched, along with the initiation of six new projects.

Specifically, five solar and wind power plants with a combined capacity of approximately 2.3 gigawatts are being launched in the Bukhara, Navoi, Namangan, and Tashkent regions, along with five high-voltage substations. Additionally, large 300-megawatt storage systems have been built for the first time in Andijan and Fergana.

In Kashkadarya, a 400-megawatt electric station is being commissioned, while a modern cogeneration block is under construction in Tashkent. Four small hydropower plants are being launched in the Andijan, Surkhandarya, and Tashkent regions.

As part of a new phase of cooperation with foreign partners, six new power plants are being built in the Fergana, Samarkand, Navoi, Tashkent regions, and Tashkent city, with a total capacity of 2.5 gigawatts and a value of US$3.5 billion.

The launch of these capacities and the implementation of new projects will result in an additional 9.5 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity next year, save 2.5 billion cubic meters of natural gas, and prevent 4.6 million tons of harmful gas emissions.

Most importantly, over 4 million households will be provided with continuous clean energy.

This will also stimulate the creation of additional economic value of US$4 billion in other sectors.

In total, next year Uzbekistan will produce 84 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity, which is 25 billion kilowatt-hours, or 1.5 times more, than in 2016.

The projects are being implemented with reliable partners such as Masdar, Acwa Power, Aksa Energy, and companies from China and Germany.

"Considering that all these projects are financed through direct foreign investments, this is a clear demonstration of trust in us and our reforms," stated the President.

In connection with this, gratitude was expressed on behalf of the entire nation to the Minister of Industry and Advanced Technologies of the UAE, Chairman of the Board of Masdar Sultan Al-Jaber, Minister of Energy and Infrastructure of the UAE Suhail Al Mazrouei, Minister of Energy of Saudi Arabia Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman Al Saud, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources of Turkey Alparslan Bayraktar, Chairman of the Board of Acwa Power Mohammad Abunayyan, Chairman of the Board of Aksa Energy Jamil Kazancı, as well as representatives from Chinese companies China Energy, China Datang, and the German company Hyper Partners.

Special thanks were given to the Asian Development Bank, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, the Islamic Development Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and the World Bank for their financial and technical assistance in implementing these projects.

It was noted that today’s projects are an integral part of large-scale reforms that began in the energy sector eight years ago.

During this period, Uzbekistan has made significant progress in the development of "green energy."

As a result of broad opening to the private sector in the last five years, nearly US$20 billion in direct foreign investments have been attracted to the energy sector.

What was once a fully state-owned system now includes 24 independent energy producers.

In the "green energy" sector, 16 major solar and wind power plants with a combined capacity of 3.5 gigawatts have been commissioned, which produces 10 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity.

As a result, the share of "green energy" in 2024 increased to 16%. This means that in a short period of time, the capacity of clean energy has increased two- to threefold.

Last year, the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) surpassed the historic threshold of US$100 billion for the first time.

The next goal is to increase the economy’s size to US$200 billion by 2030.

Meanwhile, over the next five years, electricity demand in the country is expected to increase by 1.5 times, reaching 120 billion kilowatt-hours.

As part of the Paris Agreement, Uzbekistan has committed to reducing harmful gas emissions by 35% by 2030. The President expressed readiness to extend this commitment to 2050.

Additionally, 2025 has been declared as the "Year of Environmental Protection and Green Economy" in Uzbekistan.

The head of state briefly outlined plans to elevate energy sector reforms to a new level.

By 2030, it is planned to build an additional 19,000 megawatts of "green capacity," which will increase the share of renewable energy to 54%. Specifically, in 2025, 18 solar and wind stations with a combined capacity of 3.4 gigawatts and storage systems with a capacity of 1.8 gigawatts will be commissioned.

As a result, green energy production next year will reach 12 billion kilowatt-hours.

This is equivalent to the annual consumption of 5 million households and will prevent 6.5 million tons of harmful gas emissions.

Over the next two years, a large-scale program to create more than 2,000 small and micro-hydropower plants will be implemented in cooperation with private entrepreneurs.

Moreover, support for the entry of the private sector into the industry will continue, with significant steps being taken to create a competitive electricity market.

By the end of next year, a wholesale electricity market using competition is planned to be established.

State-private partnerships will be widely implemented not only in large power stations but also in other areas of the sector.

In the "green energy" sector, regional and international cooperation will be expanded.

As the first practical step in this direction, the first agreement on the export of "green energy" to the European region was signed with partners from Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and Saudi Arabia during COP29.

To ensure the stability of the regional energy system, a unified platform with neighboring countries will be created.

"Green energy" is becoming a new driver for the rapid development of other sectors and improving the quality of life of the population. In particular, there is great interest from the population and local entrepreneurs in this field.

To stimulate such enterprises, the share of "green projects" in regional development programs will increase fivefold over the next five years.

Cooperation with industrial enterprises within the dual education system in vocational schools will also be expanded, and advanced engineering schools will be established in five universities.

Additionally, collaboration in research and development with leading companies in energy, metallurgy, chemical, and electrical industries will be enhanced.

"I want to assure you all: New Uzbekistan is a country that provides comprehensive guarantees for investments, fully supports your projects and initiatives, protects the interests of foreign partners, and is open to the world," concluded the President.

The head of state then pressed a symbolic button, launching the completed facilities and initiating the construction of new projects.