EBRD lends Uzbekistan $47 mln to strengthen power grid
Summary
Oct 7 (Interfax) - The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has provided a loan of $47.1 million to National Electric Grid of Uzbekistan to increase capacity and boost grid reliability, the banks Tashkent office said in a press release.The loan will finance the construction of a new transmission line between the settlements of Sarimay and Djankeldy in the Khoresm and Bukhara region.The new line will link two wind farms - currently under development, with a total installed capacity of up to 1GW - with the national grid. It will also help balance the load of existing transmission lines and address the issue of energy supply bottlenecks in the north and south-western parts of the country. The bank then refused to provide loans to the Uzbek government, reacting to the slowness of the market reforms. Partnership was resumed in 2017, when Shavkat Mirziyoyev was elected president of Uzbekistan.The bank adopted a five-year strategy in September 2018 to finance projects in Uzbekistan. The strategy envisages investment in private companies for the purpose of boosting their competitive power, in projects associated with energy efficiency, and also in support of the countrys regional and international cooperation.The EBRD has invested more than 3.6 billion euros in 113 projects in Uzbekistan to date.