Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- A significant event this week in the foreign policy activities of Uzbekistan was the visit of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to Jeddah to participate in the first summit of heads of states in the format "Central Asia - Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf".

In accordance with the agenda, issues of developing multilateral cooperation between the two regions were considered, which, as the head of Uzbekistan emphasized, despite modern risks and challenges, continue to be a space of peace, stability and progress, which allows expanding practical cooperation in a number of priority areas.

Shavkat Mirziyoyev, in his speech, highlighted the prospects for developing cooperation in the field of "green" energy, emphasizing the importance of adopting a separate "Road Map" for the joint implementation of projects in this area, which will unlock the high potential between the two regions in the energy sector.

During the meeting with the Crown Prince, Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia Sheikh Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud on the sidelines of the summit, the President of Uzbekistan also paid special attention to the development of energy.

In particular, the Head of State noted the importance of implementing the previously reached agreements following the previous visit of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to the KSA in August 2022, where 3 major agreements on energy cooperation were signed between the two states for a total of US$12 billion.

In my opinion, speaking about the importance of developing cooperation with Saudi Arabia in this direction, attention should be paid to the following points that are of great importance for the implementation of large investment projects in Uzbekistan.

Firstly, Saudi Arabia has become one of the largest foreign investors in projects to modernize the energy infrastructure and develop green energy in the regions of Uzbekistan.

Together with KSA, work has begun on the construction of wind power plants (WPP) in Karakalpakstan with a total capacity of 1,500 MW. In February 2022, the construction of the first wind farm with a capacity of 100 MW has already begun in Karauzyak district of Karakalpakstan. Events for the construction of wind farms with a total capacity of 1000 MW are carried out in the Bukhara and Navoi regions. According to experts, these projects are the largest in the region. According to experts, the launch of wind farms in these regions will cover the electricity needs of 4 million households and compensate for 2.5 million tons of carbon dioxide per year.

In addition, together with the Saudi company SABIC, a project is being implemented to build a thermal power plant with a capacity of 1500 MW in the city of Shirin, Syrdarya region, the commissioning of which is planned before the end of this year.

In total, Saudi Arabia is implementing 5 projects in Uzbekistan with a total cost of more than $ 4 billion, with a capacity of over 4,100 MW.

Secondly, the application of the KSA experience in the transition to a low-carbon economy will greatly contribute to the development of environmentally friendly technologies in Uzbekistan. As is known, in 2018 our republic ratified the Paris Agreement with the aim of developing environmentally friendly energy sources and plans to halve the energy intensity of the economy by 2030.

Moreover, Uzbekistan has the potential to achieve carbon neutrality in the energy sector by 2050 by accelerating the introduction of renewable energy, energy-saving technologies and modernization of the electricity generation sector.

According to experts, the application of the KSA experience in the transition to a low-carbon economy will make a great contribution to the development of environmentally friendly technologies and will increase the share of renewable energy in the country’s energy balance from the current 14% to 40% by 2030.

Also, in accordance with previously reached agreements on the development of renewable and hydrogen energy in Uzbekistan, together with Saudi Arabia, it is planned to build a pilot plant with a capacity of 40-50 kW and introduce new innovative technologies for the production of hydrogen energy. These achievements, in turn, will become one of the practical measures in the implementation of the tasks to achieve the sustainable development goals of Uzbekistan.

Thirdly, the participation of Saudi companies in the implementation of large investment projects in Uzbekistan is of great importance for the development of the oil and gas industry of our republic.

For example, involving the world’s most profitable national oil company Saudi Aramco in the exploration, production and processing of oil and gas in Uzbekistan contributes to the production of high value-added products.

Moreover, the interaction of Uzbek companies with Saudi Aramco will make it possible to compile 3D modeling of fields, analyze the composition of the soil to obtain the optimal drilling point in order to maximize the recovery of reservoirs, as well as train professional personnel capable of developing and effectively applying high technologies in the oil and gas industry.

In general, it can be stated that Saudi Arabia considers Uzbekistan as a key partner in the Central Asian region in the energy sector. At the same time, building up bilateral cooperation in the energy sector will contribute to the development of industry, attracting foreign investment, which in turn will increase the economic potential of Uzbekistan.

Of course, this will also have a positive effect on the development of interregional cooperation, ensure security and sustainable development of Central Asia.

Jasur Rakhmatov,

Chief Researcher at ISMI

under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan