The President’s New Uzbekistan’s Development Strategy for 2022-2026 Decree approved the 2022State Program. According to the program, the Uzbek energy and natural gas markets will be liberalized with the establishment of guarantees of social protection, the Ministry of Energy reports.
The program provides for the introduction of social consumption norms to attract more private investment in the energy sector and protect the vulnerable.
By April, a draft resolution of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan will be developed, aimed at creating a healthy competitive environment in the energy sector, creating equal opportunities for all participants and introducing transparent pricing mechanisms.
The monopoly on the electricity supply will be abolished, market mechanisms will be introduced in the industry with the establishment of guarantees of social protection.
In particular, it is planned to create an organization with the function of a "single buyer", by separating the functions of commerce and operation of electrical networks of National Electric Grids of Uzbekistan (NEGU).
NEGU will be relived from the function of a "single buyer " and will perform the role of the Main Networks Operator, implementing the transportation of electricity through the main networks, as well as performing the operation, maintenance and development of the main power grids.
Uzbekhydroenergo has been instructed to attract private investors to the implementation of small and medium-sized investment projects.
In accordance with the above, an independent regulatory body for the competitive electricity and natural gas market will be established; an enterprise acting as a single buyer; national dispatch center.
In addition, a new version of the draft Electricity Industry Bill (until September 2022) and the draft Natural Gas Bill (until October 2022), as well as the draft government decree on the approval of the Grid Code (until June 2022) will be developed.
