Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On 7 February, the Ministry of Finance hosted a meeting with the Chairman of the Management Board of ACWA Power (Saudi Arabia) Muhammad Abunayan.

During the meeting, Mr. Abunayan noted the continued development of trade, economic and investment relations between Uzbekistan and Saudi Arabia, as well as the strengthening of political ties, which favorably affects the interest of Saudi companies in Uzbekistan.

In particular, on 26 September 2019, the Ministry of Energy of the Republic of Uzbekistan and ACWA Power signed agreements on the basic conditions for the construction of a combined-cycle turbine with a capacity of 1300-1500 MW and wind power plants with a capacity of 500 MW in Uzbekistan. The signing of an agreement on these projects is scheduled for March 5 this year.

Muhammad Abunayan also expressed his intention to take part in the tender for the project to upgrade the Syrdarya TPP under PPP conditions, in cooperation with the International Finance Corporation. Particularly noted was the cooperation in the field of building human resources taking into account foreign experience, which provides for a great deal of attention to training local personnel in the creation of jobs in new power plants based on international best practices.

ACWA Power is a developer, investor, co-owner and operator of a portfolio of 56 enterprises producing electricity and desalination. The company is present in 12 countries, including the regions of the Middle East and North Africa, South Africa and Southeast Asia. The company's investment portfolio exceeds 47 billion US dollars, and the total production capacity is 31 GW of electricity and 5.3 million cubic meters of desalinated water; more than 3,500 employees work in ACWA Power enterprises in 12 countries, 90% of which are representatives of the local population Starting from lower-level employees to managerial level.