Japan Loans Uzbekistan $229.6M for Energy Efficiency Push

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — Japan will extend a $229.6 million concessional loan to Uzbekistan to fund energy efficiency upgrades across public buildings and the industrial and commercial sectors, in a deal that advances both countries' green development agendas.

The financing agreement was formalized on June 10, when Uzbekistan's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Jamshid Kuchkarov met with a Japanese delegation led by Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Hirata Kenji. Representatives from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and relevant line ministries also participated.

The two sides signed exchange notes covering two projects under JICA's yen loan facility. The total financing package amounts to 36.75 billion yen — equivalent to over 2.75 trillion Uzbek soums at the Central Bank's exchange rate — and carries terms that reflect the concessional nature of the deal: an annual interest rate of 2.4%, a repayment period of 25 years, and a seven-year grace period.

Funds will be directed toward modernizing infrastructure and deploying energy-saving technologies, with the stated aim of reducing both energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions across targeted facilities.

The Japanese Embassy noted that the project aligns with the "green development and resilience" pillar enshrined in the Tokyo Declaration — the outcome document of the Central Asia + Japan Dialogue summit — embedding the loan within a broader regional framework rather than treating it as a purely bilateral transaction.

Talks between the two sides also covered expanded cooperation in agriculture, healthcare, and education, as well as the "One Village — One Product" program, a rural development initiative designed to support local manufacturing and employment in Uzbekistan's countryside.