TASHKENT, Uzbekistan, October 31. A new unit at the Thermal Power Plant in Uzbekistan’s Syrdarya region has commenced generating energy, Trend reports.
The operational capacity of the newly launched unit stands at approximately 120 MW, representing 8 percent of the power plant's design capacity. Plans are in place to escalate this capacity to 1000 MW by the end of 2023, with a full operational capacity targeted for the spring of 2024.
The collaboration between Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power energy company and the Ministry of Energy of Uzbekistan was initiated in the spring of 2020, culminating in the construction of a combined cycle gas turbine thermal power plant near Shirin in early 2021.
This 1.5 GW power plant is poised to produce a substantial 12 billion kWh of electricity annually. Notably, the utilization of modern energy-efficient technologies is expected to reduce gas consumption by 1 billion cubic meters compared to existing similar thermal power plants.
International creditors, including the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the OPEC Fund for International Development, DEG (Deutsche Investments-Und Entwicklungsgesellschaft Mbh), and others, are funding the project. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank in particular has contributed $100 million to support this initiative.
Meanwhile, ACWA Power's involvement in Uzbekistan extends beyond this project, as the company is actively engaged in several other ventures. These include the construction of two wind farms in Karakalpakstan, with capacities of 1.5 GW and 100 GW, as well as participation in the establishment of two 500 MW wind farms in the Bukhara region.
Furthermore, ACWA has signed agreements for the development of two photovoltaic power plants and energy storage complexes in the Tashkent and Samarkand regions, with an additional $88 million investment in green hydrogen production in Chirchik.