Saudis Back Wind Power and Natural Gas Production for Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev shown here with Saudi Arabia Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on August 24, 2022. Photo: ViktorKovalev, via Twitter

It was all part of a package of $14 billion in investments the Saudi government promised.

$12 billion of that will be to help with increasing energy shortage problems in Uzbekistan.

One part of the package will be for a 1.5 GW wind farm to be built in Karakalpakstan. The farm, to be designed and built the Saudi company ACWA, is projected to be the biggest wind farm in the world when it is completed. The output of the farm will provide power for 1.65 million homes upon completion.

It comes at an important time for Uzbekistan. In a nation which traditionally relies on hydropower to keep its homes, offices, and manufacturing facilities up and running, the power grid has been suffering regular blackouts as regional drought has put pressure on what those plants can deliver.

Besides backing the wind power solution which should keep the country electrified even as the region grows hotter and drier, ACWA also told President Mirziyoyev it would investigate prospects for bringing hydrogen-fueled electrical power to Uzbekistan.

The Saudi government also promised during the meetings that they will evaluate possible new investments in Uzbekistan’s natural gas industry. Uzbekistan is one of the largest natural gas producers in the entire world, but has become more dependent on it domestically as hydro power outputs have diminished.

Another major agreement signed off during the Saudi-Uzbek summit was to Saudi Arabia to increase access for Uzbeki overseas foreign workers in Saudi Arabia. Millions of Uzebkis typically migrate to Russia for work every year, but that has been affected negatively by the war with Ukraine.

A last major part of the visit was a pitch by Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to a group of 20 large Saudi companies to consider partnering in the privatization of many Uzbeki companies. Mirziyoyev has himself committed to privatizing either completely or partially some 75% of the country’s total 3,000 state-owned enterprises (SOEs). Some which are now open for investment and/or buyout are in energy, minerals, and transportation. The Uzbek banking sector itself, which is over 80% state-owned, is also on the sales block.