Uzbekistan Has More Than 534,000 Meters Not Sending Data

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.uz) — More than 534,000 gas and electricity meters installed in homes across Uzbekistan are not transmitting data to automated metering systems, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev said at an energy meeting on 27 July.

According to figures presented at the meeting, 300,000 gas meters and 234,000 electricity meters are either not connected to data transmission systems or are not operating properly. Automated electricity and gas metering systems, known as ASKUE and ASKUG, were introduced more than four years ago.

Mirziyoyev said the lack of accurate data transmission makes it difficult to accurately track consumption and monitor payments for energy resources. In some regions, this is contributing to further increases in outstanding receivables.

The meeting also noted that some hokims lack accurate calculations for the development of energy infrastructure.

Electricity losses in the networks stand at 17.2%. In the first six months of the year, they reached 4.8 billion kWh.

Losses exceed 25% in Andijan, as well as in the Asaka, Yangibad, Kasan, Kukdala, Baysun, Altynsay, Kushtepa, Tashlak, Kushrabad and Samarkand districts.

The president separately criticised an approach that focuses primarily on installing solar panels as a means of improving energy efficiency. He said that if a building itself is not energy efficient, funds allocated for such solutions may be used inefficiently.

Problems with meter readings also persist at the household level. In particular, when a gas meter modem malfunctions, gas service employees may manually collect the data and subsequently enter the readings into the system.