A USD $110 million loan from the Asian Development Bank will help fund Uzbekistan’s first large scale solar power plant.
Announced at the 6th meeting of the Asia Solar Energy Forum in Tashkent, ADB President Takehiko Nakao said the facility will be the largest of its type in Central Asia.
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), Uzbekistan currently relies heavily on fossil fuels for power generation. Natural gas represents approximately 85 percent of the electricity generation mix, petroleum products and coal approximately 8 and 2 percent respectively and hydroelectricity the remaining 5 percent.
Uzbekistan’s government is aiming to generate about 21% of all its energy needs from renewable sources, including solar, by 2031.
“Uzbekistan has a large land mass, plenty of sunshine, and the highly skilled and educated human resources needed to become a major player in solar energy development in this region,” said Takehiko Nakao.
To be constructed in Samarkand, the solar farm will not only help green the nation’s energy mix; it will also help address the supply-demand gap.
Uzbekistan experiences 2,410 to 3,090 hours of sunshine annually, depending on the location. The country has rich reserves of natural gas, but ageing infrastructure and export demands means its citizens frequently endure power outages.
Counterpart financing of $200 million for the solar project will be sourced from Uzbekistan’s Fund for Reconstruction and Development and from Uzbekenergo, the state joint stock company.
The project is expected to take around 5 years to construct, with an estimated completion date of March 2019.
While solar panels look set to make a substantial impact in the country, it would appear wind power is yet to gain a foothold. According to information from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), only 1MW of wind capacity was announced last year.
