During the signing of two additional agreements between "Uzatom" and "Rosatom" on March 24, work began on the construction of the first nuclear power plant in Uzbekistan, including the pouring of concrete for the nuclear power unit in the Farish district of the Jizzakh region.
Previously, the financial details of the project remained largely undisclosed. The parameters of the design and estimate documentation, the total cost of the plant, the cost of produced electricity, and the purchase price were not made public.
In light of this uncertainty, Likhachev emphasized that the single small nuclear power plant project in Uzbekistan could provide Russian industry with orders worth up to 2 trillion rubles (approximately $24.7 billion).
“We have many partners among both private and state companies in Russia. The construction of the small nuclear power plant will create orders worth up to 2 trillion rubles and about a thousand jobs in our country. From a macroeconomic perspective, this means a return on investment of up to 1.5 rubles for every ruble invested during the construction phase and up to 2 rubles during the operation phase,” Likhachev noted.
However, the director of "Uzatom," Azim Akhmedkhadzhayev, stated last year that the costs for constructing the small nuclear power plant would not exceed $2 billion. Without disclosing the cost structure and contract terms, it is impossible to understand how these figures relate.
The cooperation agreement in the field of nuclear energy between Uzbekistan and Russia, which includes the construction of the first nuclear power plant, was signed in December 2017. Initially, it was planned that the first power unit, costing $11 billion, would be launched in 2028, and that the nuclear power complex would consist of two units of 1200 MW each.
However, it was later decided to begin the construction of a small nuclear station. A new contract for the design and construction of the small nuclear power plant was signed on May 27, 2024, in Tashkent during the visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin. The station will be located near Lake Tuzkan in the Farish district of the Jizzakh region.
According to the latest agreements, two low-capacity power units with RITM-200N reactors, each with a capacity of 55 MW, will be built on the site, as well as two large units with VVER-1000 reactors.
The total capacity of the new nuclear complex will be 2.1 GW, and it is expected to produce 15.2 billion kWh of electricity per year by 2035, which corresponds to approximately 15% of the current electricity consumption in Uzbekistan, as noted by the country's Deputy Prime Minister Jamshid Khojaev.
Likhachev also added that the combination of large and small capacities at one site is unique: “There is no other project like this in the world, and in this regard, our Uzbek project will become a global benchmark.”
