Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- The head of Metalloinvest, Nazim Efendiev, said that the company had asked Uzbekistan to reduce tariffs for rail transportation of goods. He called for tariffs to be "fair" and equal. The Uzbek authorities promised to consider this issue. It is reported by Kommersant.

Metalloinvest entered the capital of the Tashkent Metallurgical Plant in 2022. The company manages production jointly with the Fund for Reconstruction and Development of Uzbekistan. Mr. Efendiev at Innoprom said that Uzbekistan has "huge potential", but "there are logistical problems" - remoteness from ports and from "powerful sales markets".

“We don’t have an equalized tariff between Russia, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan: most of all we travel through the territory of Russia - a cheap tariff, when we come to Kazakhstan - the tariff rises, when we come to Uzbekistan - it rises even more. And this is not an export transit, we are bringing here a semi-finished product for processing,” he addressed the head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation Denis Manturov (TASS quote).

The head of Metalloinvest intends to discuss this issue today, April 25, at a meeting with the leaders of the Uzbek Railways. “I want this to be a fair, even tariff that would encourage Russian producers to bring here,” Nazim Efendiev explained.

Minister of Investments and Foreign Trade of Uzbekistan Sardor Umurzakov said that the country's authorities are studying the problem. “We will work and the head of the Uzbek Railways will definitely come to you and report to you,” he promised.