A Turkish company will invest more than $350 million in modernizing the power grid in the Samarkand region.

A Turkish company will invest over $350 million in upgrading the Samarkand region's power grid.

$357 million in direct investment will be attracted to the Samarkand region's power distribution infrastructure. A decree launching a major public-private partnership (PPP) project was signed by Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

The distribution grids will remain fully state-owned, but their management and operation will be transferred to a private operator for 12 years. The project's main objective is to upgrade outdated equipment, eliminate capacity shortages, and guarantee a stable power supply for residents and new industrial facilities.

Following an international tender, the Turkish company Aksa Elektrik Perakende Satış A.Ş. won the award, establishing the Uzbek company Aksa Samarqand Electricity Distribution for this purpose. During the first two years of the transition period, the investor will invest at least $27 million, and will then begin large-scale reconstruction of the lines and the implementation of digital control systems. A separate, important condition will be the systematic reduction of electricity losses. A target schedule will be established following a technical audit: for baseline losses of 20-25%, they will be reduced by 1.4 percentage points annually, and for losses of 15-20%, by 0.6 percentage points.

The Ministry of Energy and the Ministry of Economy and Finance will monitor the investor's fulfillment of all obligations and investment volumes.

It was previously reported that Uzbekistan plans to introduce a unified energy passport for each mahalla. This will contain information about consumers, the condition of electricity and gas networks, and necessary infrastructure repairs and modernization work.