The State Assets Management Agency commented on reports regarding the transfer of Texnopark to the management of Artel

SAMA responds to reports on transferring Texnopark to Artel management

Currently, the Texnopark enterprise is under the management of the Tashkent Khokimiyat, which owns 100% of its share, reported the head of the State Assets Management Agency (SAMA), Sokhibjon Murodov.

At a press conference on October 8, Kun.uz journalist Madina Ochilova spoke about information received by the editorial office, according to which Texnopark was allegedly transferred to the trust management of Artel based on a classified document.

She asked to clarify whether a relevant agreement exists, on what legal basis the enterprise is managed, and why information about the possible transfer was not published.

Answering the question, SAMA head Sokhibjon Murodov recalled that the functions of the owner of state enterprises in Uzbekistan can be performed not only by the State Assets Management Agency, but also by other government bodies.

In particular, according to him, the management of a number of enterprises is assigned to the Ministry of Economy and Finance, local khokimiyats, and other departments.

"Texnopark was created directly by the Tashkent Khokimiyat. Therefore, 100% of Texnopark's share belongs to the city khokimiyat. To date, the company has not been transferred to the management of [Artel]," Murodov stated.

He reported that measures to improve the financial condition of the enterprise are currently being prepared.

"We are preparing measures for the financial recovery of Texnopark. In about a month or a month and a half, we will present information about this to the public. Measures are currently being developed for the financial recovery of the enterprise, the production of new goods, and the review of outdated lines of activity," said the head of SAMA.

Murodov emphasized that the management of the company is currently carried out by the capital's khokimiyat.

The journalist clarified whether the enterprise had been transferred to the trust management of a private company earlier. The head of the agency explained that he relies on the documents that were presented to him.

"According to the documents that I have seen and that were provided to me, to date, management is carried out by the Tashkent Khokimiyat," he replied.

According to him, over the past eight months, corporate decisions regarding Texnopark that required coordination with SAMA came precisely from the capital's administration.

Speaking about the possible cooperation of the enterprise with private companies in the past, Murodov noted: "Perhaps they worked in cooperation. I do not know about this."

Murodov also reported that SAMA is working to consolidate state shares in enterprises that are currently managed by various departments.

According to him, the goal of this work is to ensure more transparent management of state assets and eliminate uncertainty regarding which bodies perform the functions of the owner.

In particular, the agency is considering the possibility of transferring founder powers to it regarding a number of enterprises where state shares are currently assigned to other structures.

At the same time, the head of SAMA did not name specific decisions or timeframes for changing the ownership structure of Texnopark.

Earlier, entrepreneur and former Tashkent Khokim Jakhongir Artikkhodjayev, in an interview with the Lolazor podcast at the beginning of 2024, spoke about Artel's participation in the development of Texnopark. According to him, the territory of the future industrial complex was in a neglected state. After the president visited the site, the task was set to restore production and create 5-6 thousand jobs. Artikkhodjayev reported that his team proposed 24 projects, 11 of which received approval.

According to the entrepreneur, to implement the projects, it was necessary to attract loans worth 300-400 million dollars. The initiators took responsibility for their repayment regardless of the financial results of production. Artikkhodjayev claimed that by the time of the interview, all 11 projects were launched, and Texnopark's product exports for 2023 reached 60 million dollars.

"The Artel company fulfilled the role of a shepherd. That is, it turned an unattractive, abandoned plant, which for years nobody needed, into an attractive asset. [...] But the shepherd does not say: 'Give me your sheep.' He returns them to the owner and receives payment for his work," Artikkhodjayev stated.

He emphasized that the enterprise and all its property remain state property, while the management company is responsible for repaying the attracted loans. According to his claim, in four years the management company received no profit, as all revenues were directed to loan repayments.

Texnopark is a large industrial complex in the Yashnabad district of Tashkent, created on June 10, 2019, on the basis of the former Chkalov Tashkent Aviation Production Association (later — Tashkent Mechanical Plant). The project was implemented on the initiative of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to develop industrial production and produce import-substituting products.

Texnopark enterprises produce household refrigerators, washing machines, electronic gas meters, elevators and escalators, industrial air conditioners, cooling systems, pumps, boilers, and other products. According to the presidential press service as of February 2024, the complex combined 17 production facilities with a total value of 365 million dollars. Products were manufactured under foreign brands as well and exported to 10 countries.