Uzbekistan and Singapore will set up a Design and Engineering Center to develop and implement the New Tashkent smart city project, the Ministry of Investment, Industry and Trade (MIIT) said.

The relevant deal was inked at a meeting between the Minister Laziz Kudratov, and the CEO of Singapore-based Meinhardt Group, Shahzad Naseem, during a meeting on January 14.

In particular, the Center will be implementing urban planning and industrial initiatives, namely designing of master plan for the Phase I of the Yangi Toshkent (New Tashkent) smart city project and a number of chemical and pharmaceutical enterprises. Training of personnel for the center will be carried out by the Singapore side.

As per the deal, the Center is set to be launched in February-March, and the concept of the master plan for New Tashkent project will be developed in April-May. Development of a detailed project plan is expected in July-October. The deal’s estimated price is at $1 billion.

Also, Meinhardt Group, together with Uzkimyosnoat, will launch alkylbenzene unit in Kashkadarya province. The project is estimated at $231 million. Completion of the development of the feasibility study of the project is scheduled for April-May, and the start of work to attract investors - for July-August.

In addition, the company is also considering the implementation of a project of a caustic soda unit in Khorezm province worth $220 million.

Meinhardt group is the largest engineering and investment company in Singapore. It portfolio includes over 510 large infrastructure and industrial facilities around the world, with around 5,000 people employed.

The Tashkent master plan project, which includes the construction of a New Tashkent smart city east of the capital, between the Chirchik and Karasu rivers on 20,000 hectares and will be designed to accommodate 500,000 people. However, by 2045 only 6,000 hectares are planned to be developed. Based on these estimates, promising sites for development, as well as schemes of the main roads connecting the capital with the new city, were developed.