On the eve of the 30th anniversary of Uzbekistan's Independence, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev commissioned the country's first solar photovoltaic station
August 28,2021
On the eve of the 30th anniversary of Uzbekistan's independence, the country's first solar photovoltaic station was commissioned in the Karmanа district of the Navoi region, in the launching ceremony of which the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev took part.
Currently, hydrocarbons, mainly coal, oil and gas, are widely used as sources of energy generation. However, their supplies are limited. Therefore, renewable energy sources are being developed in Uzbekistan.
As you know, Uzbekistan has an average of 320 sunny days a year. According to experts, due to the construction of solar power plants in the country, a total of 600 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity can be generated, which is 8 times more than the total demand of Uzbekistan.
That is why foreign investors are attracted, many solar power plants are being built. The station in the Karmanа district is the first of them.
The construction of the complex began in 2020. Investments for 110 million dollars were mastered and 300 thousand solar panels were installed. The station's capacity is 100 megawatts.
“This station is the first big step, one might say, the first swallow of the new energy system of Uzbekistan, marks the beginning of a completely new stage in the development of the industry. It will generate 252 million kilowatt-hours of electricity per year. This will save 80 million cubic meters of natural gas and prevent emission of 160 thousand tons of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere", President Shavkat Mirziyoyev said.
The project, called "Nur Navoi Solar", is implemented by Masdar of the United Arab Emirates.
In the energy sector alone, together with the UAE, Uzbekistan is implementing six projects with a capacity of 1.7 thousand megawatts worth about $ 1.5 billion. In particular, in 2023, a 500 megawatt wind farm will be built in Navoi region in cooperation with Masdar, as well as a 200 megawatt solar station with the participation of the Phanes group.
The head of state thanked foreign investors, all builders and specialists who took part in the construction of the photovoltaic station.
The importance of this plant is that it will provide sustainable energy for the growing needs of the population and industry at an affordable price of $ 2.67 cents per kilowatt-hour.
Another important aspect is that thanks to such projects, new directions of line production and modern technologies appear in Uzbekistan.
In particular, for the construction of this station, electrical equipment was supplied from the "Uzelektroapparat" enterprise, cables from "Uzbekkabel", HPC systems, support columns from the "Bektemir Steel Works".
In general, such large-scale projects will contribute to the creation of a market for local manufacturers of at least $ 1 billion per year, as well as the formation of an electrical cluster.
In this cluster, it will be possible to localize the production of solar panels, cable products, transformers, batteries, electric motors, generators and basic equipment for wind farms. This means the creation of thousands of new jobs.
The economy of Uzbekistan is developing rapidly, the share of industry in its structure is increasing. The standard of living of the population is growing, and the use of electrical engineering is increasing. In particular, over the past 5 years, the number of entrepreneurs who consume electricity has increased by 25 percent, and their consumption by 30 percent.
The President also outlined plans for the development of the economy, including the energy sector.
In the next 5 years, it is planned to increase the growth rate of the country's economy by 1.5 times and bring GDP to at least $ 100 billion. In this regard, thousands of new industrial enterprises of medium and large size will be launched, and the demand for electricity will reach 100 billion kilowatt-hours. This is 30 billion kilowatt-hours more than now.
Shavkat Mirziyoyev during the event also noted that the Government has very big plans for the implementation of new reforms and projects in the electric power industry. In particular, in the next 5 years, 19 projects worth $ 6.5 billion will be launched to create new capacities of 11.5 thousand megawatts. By 2030, the share of renewables in electricity generation will exceed 30 percent. To supply electricity to the regions, 3 thousand kilometers of new power transmission lines with a voltage of 500 and 220 kilovolts will be laid.
At the same time, today 66 low-voltage networks, 74 percent of substations and more than 50 percent of transformer stations are outdated. In this regard, in the next five years, 70 thousand kilometers of low-voltage power transmission lines, 22 thousand transformers and more than 100 substations will be modernized.
The Central Asian countries are working to create a unified energy chain and enhance cooperation in this sphere. The Head of the state noted that for this purpose, joint projects in the sphere of electric power will be implemented, additional trunk grids will be built, which will unite the energy systems of the region’s countries.
Source:Embassy of the Republic of Uzbekistan,Tehran