President Reviews Development Plans for Coal and Uranium Industries

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — On 2 February, the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, reviewed a presentation on the current operations and future development plans of the country’s coal and uranium sectors.

The discussion addressed increasing coal production, strengthening competitiveness in the industry, and ensuring efficient use of available resources. It was noted that during the 2025–2026 autumn–winter period, coal output is planned at 10 million tons, 1.3 million tons higher than in the previous season. As of now, 9 million tons have already been mined, exceeding last year’s output for the same period by 590,000 tons. The President emphasized that next season production should reach 11 million tons.

To achieve these targets, development of coal deposits in Tashkent region and southern regions will be accelerated, selective mining will be expanded, and additional machinery and excavators will be attracted through outsourcing. With greater participation of private enterprises, an additional 2.5 million tons of coal is planned to be mined in 2026.

Special attention was given to the development of the Nishbosh coal deposit in Angren. The total investment in the project is estimated at nearly US$500 million, with reserves of 233 million tons. In 2026, the first 1 million tons of coal are expected to be extracted, with annual production projected to reach 10 million tons in the future. The project will create 880 permanent jobs.

The presentation also reviewed a project for producing new industrial products through deep coal processing. Initiated by Uzkimyosanoat JSC, the project aims to produce polymer products using chemical coal processing. The project’s estimated cost is US$5 billion, with capacity to process 8–9 million tons of coal annually and produce 1.18 million tons of polymer products each year.

In the uranium sector, 7,000 tons of uranium were mined in 2025, with identified reserves of 139,000 tons. In 2026, development will begin at the Arnasay, West Kizilkak, South Jongeldi, and East Agron deposits. Given the expected increase in production, expansion of uranium processing capacity and provision of sulfuric acid and technical sulfur for production will be necessary.

The President gave responsible officials specific instructions to ensure the timely and efficient implementation of all projects in the coal and uranium industries, increase production volumes, and enhance the economic efficiency of both sectors.