The government-owned company Uzkimyosanoat purchased a 16.92% stake in the Samarkandkimyo chemical plant for $30 million.
On March 13, a government commission, headed by Deputy PM Jamshid Khodjayev inspected the complex mineral fertilizer production unit project in Pastdargom district of Samarkand province.
The project is estimated at $390.5 million. The unit will be on 190.4 hectares and have an annual capacity of 910,000 tons of fertilizer, including 370,000 tons of phosphorus fertilizers and 540,000 tons of complex fertilizers.
The enterprise's export potential is estimated at $50 million, and it will create 900 jobs.
Capital expenditures (EPC) for the chemical complex project exceeded $487 million. The project also includes the development of a deposit and the enrichment of phosphate ore in the Navoi province as part of the Neofos project.
Funding sources are:
- $277 million in loans,
- $120 million in investors' equity,
- $90 million in funds from Uzkimyosanoat.
To date, $427 million has already been invested in the project.
The project's feasibility study has been filed to the Center for Comprehensive Expertise of Projects and Import Contracts. Once the issues are resolved, it is planned to open access to additional funding from Uzkimyosanoat in the amount of $60 million.
As of today:
- designing is 98.6% complete,
- equipment delivery is 80.6% complete (the main equipment has already been delivered and installation is underway),
- construction work is only 34.6% complete.
Moreover, in 2020, under a Cabinet of Ministers resolution, the chemical plant, established in 1954, was handed to Cypriot company Ferkensco Management Limited (later re-registered in Hong Kong) at zero cost, subject to investment obligations.
The Cypriot company was linked to Bakhodir Gafurov and Eriell Holding Company.
It ultimately received 60.35% of the government stake and 39.65% of the shares of Uzkimyosanoat. In exchange, the investor was required to invest at least $200 million, build a new chemical complex, pay off the company's debts (in April 2021, the government, through the classified Resolution No. 203, allocated the company a non-repayable subsidy of 83.8 billion soums to pay off "historical debt"), create 500 jobs, and launch production of 600,000 tons of fertilizer per year.
The investor secured financing from Russia's Gazprom, and its affiliate Enter Engineering (the companies are associated with businessman Bakhtiyor Fazylov) served as the general contractor.
Ferkensco Management Limited was supposed to launch the facility by July 1, 2023, but failed to fulfill this obligation.
According to the government resolution, if the investor fails to perform its investment and social obligations, the shares are returned to the government, and the invested funds are not refunded.
However, in late December 2025, it became known that the government had regained partial control of the Samarkandkimyo plant, with Uzkimyosanoat receiving a 24.94% stake in the enterprise (the decision was made in July 2025). As noted above, the government-owned company paid $30 million for a 16.92% stake.
According to the Unified Government Register of Enterprises and Organizations, the joint venture's primary owner remains the Chinese company Ferkensco Management Limited, registered in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Province. It holds a 75.06% stake.
