Uzbekistan to Phase Out Heating and Hot Water Subsidies by 2030

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — Uzbekistan plans to gradually phase out subsidies for its district heating system and fully eliminate government support in this sector by 2030.

This was announced by Ilkhom Turaev, Chairman of the Board of the state-owned company “Issiqlikta’minoti,” during a press conference held on 8 July at the Agency for Information and Mass Communications.

According to Turaev, residents of Tashkent and other regions currently receive hot water and heating at reduced tariffs, with the difference between market cost and consumer prices covered by state budget subsidies.

“To ensure the sustainable development of the heating sector, the subsidy system must be abandoned. However, doing this all at once is not feasible. We are moving toward a complete phase-out of subsidies by 2030. To achieve this, tariffs must be revised regularly — once or twice a year. A sudden, sharp increase in prices could seriously affect citizens’ welfare,” Turaev emphasized.

He stated that a gradual reduction in budget support is planned. The transition to market-based tariffs will be implemented in stages, which is expected to minimize the burden on the population while ensuring the stable operation of heating companies.