Mr Akbar Mukhitdinov head of analysis and development at construction company Uzstroimaterialy said the plant will have capacity to produce 1.7 million tonnes of cement per year.

He said "At present, a land plot has been allocated for the construction of the cement plant and an examination is being made of the investment agreement that is to be signed between the investor and the Uzbek government.

He added that Uzbekistan is preparing to build five cement plants with combined production capacity of 8.5 million tonnes per year."

Uzbekistan is one of the leading cement producers among former Soviet countries.