Uzbekistan, Tashkent, July 5 / Trend D. Azizov /
Uzeltehprom and South Korea's LG Electronics have signed a cooperation agreement to expand the Sino company's household appliances production capacity. Sino is Uzbekistan's monopoly refrigeration and freezing equipment producer with its headquarters in Samarkand.
LG Electronics will launch enhanced refrigerator production at Sino worth $8.9 million in 2010-2011. The South Korean company will increase refrigerator and freezer production to 150,000 units per year by 2012 from the current 25,000 units. Exports will increase 7.5 times to 15,000 units. Production localization during this period will increase from 17 to 52 percent.
The investor plans to begin equipment deliveries to install a new production line in August 2010.
LG Electronics commissioned refrigerator production at Sino in December 2009. The capacity of the first SKD-assembly line was 50,000 refrigerators per year. Investments in the first stage hit $2 million.
The volume of the domestic refrigeration equipment market will increase by 190,000 units by 2013. Uzbekistan currently imports roughly 120,000 refrigerators and freezers per year.
Sino was commissioned in 1973. Over 90 percent of the plant's output is sold domestically. Only 15 percent of the plant's capacity is utilized due to a lack of equipment.
The Samarkand Economic Court declared Sino bankrupt in 2003. The plant's management was then transferred to a consortium of Uzbek companies.