Five new gas fields have been discovered in Uzbekistan since the start of the year. This was reported at a presentation of oil and gas projects to President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, his press service said.
Eighty wells have been drilled in the provinces, including some 6,000 meters deep or more. A further 40 wells are planned for the fourth quarter, the statement said.
Exploration is being expanded to build up gas reserves. In particular, the volume of three-dimensional seismic surveys is planned to rise fivefold in 2026 compared with last year.
The presentation also covered plans to study promising areas, above all the deep-lying layers of Ustyurt, to develop new fields and to make existing wells more efficient.
In Ustyurt, projects are being implemented with foreign partners to drill new wells, reanalyze geophysical data and improve gas production, the statement said.
Projects to build trunk gas pipelines and modernize compressor stations were reviewed separately, to increase the capacity of the gas transport system.
According to the estimates presented, implementing these projects, including the use of modern electric motors at some stations, would make supplies more stable and save up to 125 million cubic meters of natural gas a year. Proposals on funding sources for the projects were also discussed.
The event also heard that the combined net profit of Uzbekneftegaz and its major enterprises rose over the first nine months compared with the same period last year.
"Optimizing the loan portfolio has made it possible to reduce debt, and revising the terms of expensive loans has cut the cost of servicing them," the statement said.
It wa reported earlier that, for the first half of the year, Uzbekneftegaz reported savings of 219 billion soums on interest payments thanks to refinancing and early repayment of expensive loans. The company also reported a 1.2 trillion soum reduction in receivables and spending 1 trillion soums below plan.
In April 2025, Uzbekneftegaz placed five-year eurobonds worth $850 million. The issue yielded 8.75% a year, against 4.75% at its first placement in 2021. According to S&P Global's assessment, the proceeds were expected to go mainly toward repaying earlier debts, as well as working capital and investment.
