Uzbekistan, Tashkent, April 29 / Trend D.Azizov /
Foreign trade companies Uzmarkazimpeks and Uzprommashimpeks under the Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations, Investments and Trade of Uzbekistan signed an agreement with the International Finance Corporation (a division of the World Bank) on the provision of advisory services to attract investors for the construction of six large refrigeration chambers with a total capacity of no less than 21 tons in the regions of Uzbekistan, the Ministry's representative told Trend on Monday.
According to the report, under the agreement the IFC jointly with the World Food Logistics (WFLO) will identify suitable sites and prepare preliminary designs for the construction of refrigeration chambers in six regions of the country - Ferghana, Jizak, Samarkand, Kashkadarya, Bukhara and Surkhandarya.
Currently, IFC is considering appeals by investors with the opportunity to build, own and operate six refrigeration chambers in Uzbekistan.
The project is implemented in accordance with a programme approved by the government for the development and strengthening of the material and technical base of the storage of fruit and vegetables. Under the programme, Uzbekistan plans to build refrigeration chambers with a total capacity of 120,800 tons for a total estimated cost of 187 billion soum by 2016.
Uzbekistan grows up to seven million tons of fresh produce worth about $2 billion annually. At the moment, the total capacity of refrigeration chambers in Uzbekistan is estimated at no more than 60,000 tons. Alongside, about 80 per cent of those do not have temperature or humidity control systems which can lead to losses of 20 to 40 per cent of the crop.