During his visit to Bostanlyk district, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev examined the “Ugam-1” small hydroelectric power plant.
Uzbekistan is actively using all possible sources to increase energy capacity. In particular, hydropower in the regions is a convenient and effective solution for ensuring daily energy supply. Such stations are able to provide electricity to individual districts and mahallas without connecting to the general network. The cost of energy is significantly lower compared to other sources, which makes hydropower a priority for development.
In recent years, investments of $630 million have resulted in the construction of new hydropower plants with a capacity of more than 400 megawatts, bringing their total capacity to 2.2 gigawatts.
There are 25 hydropower plants with a total capacity of 1,330 megawatts in Tashkent region, which is 60 percent of the country’s total hydropower capacity. Four more hydropower plants with a total capacity of 340 megawatts and worth $880 million are currently under construction. Until 2028, 23 projects with a total capacity of about 2,400 megawatts are planned with the total worth of $4.8 billion.
The capacity of the “Ugam-1” small HPP is 1.48 megawatts, allowing for the annual production of 11.8 million kilowatt-hours of environmentally clean electricity. The plant is equipped with modern efficient hydraulic units and an automated control system. It is notable that domestic materials and equipment were fully utilized during construction.
Implementation of this project will ensure uninterrupted power supply to 5 thousand households, as well as tourist and recreational facilities in Chorbog, Humson and Ugam mahallas. About 4 million cubic meters of gas will be saved annually.
At the moment, two small HPPs have been established on the Ugam River, each of which generates an income of 200 billion soums per year. It was noted that due to the reuse of water flow the number of such stations can be raised to ten.
This will solve not only the issues of energy supply, but also improve the infrastructure of the region. New enterprises will appear in the sphere of entrepreneurship and agriculture.
The President was also briefed on planned projects in other regions.
With the aim of increasing the total capacity of hydropower to 6,000 megawatts by 2030, it is planned to attract foreign investment and the private sector. All legal and economic conditions have been created for this purpose. In particular, the country has the potential to build up to 2 thousand micro and small hydropower plants.