Uzmetkombinat Launches Country’s First Casting and Rolling Complex

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.uz) — President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev participated in the commissioning ceremony of a new casting and rolling complex at the Uzbek Metallurgical Plant (Uzmetkombinat) during a trip to Bekabad. The new production facility has become the country’s first project for the production of hot-rolled sheet metal.

Speaking at the ceremony, the head of state congratulated the enterprise staff, industry veterans, and foreign partners on the launch of the complex. He noted that in recent years, large-scale reforms aimed at modernizing the mining and metallurgical industry and increasing its technological level have been implemented in Uzbekistan.

According to the provided data, about US$2 billion of foreign investment has been attracted to the industry over the past 10 years, 31 large production capacities have been commissioned, and the number of enterprises has exceeded 150. During this period, the annual volume of metal product output reached 3 million tons with a total value of 23 trillion soums, compared to 800,000 tons and 1.5 trillion soums in 2016.

It was noted that today the domestic metallurgical industry produces about 80 new types of products for the mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, defense, and energy sectors, whereas previously the main part of rolled metal was intended for the construction sector.

The president emphasized that economic development and the implementation of large-scale infrastructure projects will lead to an increase in demand for metal products by approximately 1.5 times. In this regard, the further development of Uzmetkombinat, which employs more than 5,500 people, is of particular importance.

After the commissioning of the new complex, the enterprise will be able to annually produce up to 1 million tons of hot-rolled sheet metal with a total value of about 8 trillion soums. The production will make it possible to fully meet the sheet metal requirements of metallurgical enterprises in Tashkent and Samarkand, as well as create about 1,200 new high-paying jobs.

According to the head of state, the launch of the complex will be an important stage in introducing energy-efficient technologies and digital solutions at the enterprise, and increasing labor productivity and product quality.

Further development plans for the plant were also presented during the ceremony. In the coming years, it is expected to increase the use of domestic raw materials. It was reported that the iron ore reserves in the country are estimated at 1.5 billion tons.

It is planned that within three to four years after the development of the Tebinbulak deposit, the volume of steel production will reach 1 million tons per year. In addition, through the processing of ore from the Surun-ota deposit, an annual output of 600,000 tons of iron ore raw materials will be organized, and the construction of a modern metallurgical plant worth US$180 million will begin on the territory of the complex.

Separately, plans to modernize production lines for steel balls were reported. Within three years, through investments amounting to US$30 million, their production capacity should increase from 250,000 to 500,000 tons per year.

It is also planned to create the Industrial Park of Ecological Technologies of Uzbekistan on the territory of the enterprise. Already in the current year, it is expected to begin the implementation of six projects with a total value of US$70 million here for the production of large-diameter pipes, overhead cranes, and filtration equipment. This is expected to create an additional 660 high-paying jobs.

Following his speech, the president gave a symbolic start to the operation of the new casting and rolling complex, and then met with industry veterans, enterprise workers, and foreign partners.