Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) - One of the main components of a modern industrial enterprise is the environmental safety of production. Today, in many countries, the requirements for it are growing exponentially, and Uzbekistan is no exception. Indicative in this regard is the activity of the domestic enterprise Uzvtortsvetmet, which today does not just keep up to date, but strives to bring its production facilities to the leaders of Central Asia in terms of environmental friendliness and cleanliness.

To solve this problem, experts say, it is important not only to find modern, but also suitable equipment for local conditions. Uzvtortsvetmet has plans for this year to invest over US$4.5 million in new construction, modernization and technological renewal. For example, it is planned to install new ventilation systems and wastewater treatment plants in the lead alloy production workshop.

We are currently discussing this project with the Swiss Abplanalp. This is one of the largest companies in Central Europe, which for 40 years has been supplying modern technology to global manufacturers in the field of metal processing.

“We are awaiting offers from them for the lead workshop. There should be a separate complex, which includes several stages, each of which requires special equipment. It will comply with leading international standards for ecology and energy efficiency,” said Alexander Babayants, Director for Prospective Development and Investments at Uzvtortsvetmet.

In addition, in October, a delegation of the Czech company Soudek visited the plant. This is a financial and industrial group that promotes low-cost foreign currency loans, that is, it provides direct lending to facilities around the world, including in Uzbekistan.

“Czech experts visited our plant three times, they carefully studied everything, and for the last time came with a proposal to place equipment for the processing of scrap and aluminum waste. This includes an 8-ton rotary kiln, a casting machine, and a special conveyor that will print European-style aluminum ingots,” Alexander Babayants said.

To further load these capacities, Uzvtorsvetmet has already held preliminary negotiations with Uzavtosanoat enterprises on the use of domestic aluminum. As a result, it is planned that new ingots will be used in the production of auto parts.

“We agreed on the chemical composition of the alloys in advance, until the end of the year a pilot supply of these ingots will be carried out, next year we are planning full-fledged production with a turnover of 5 thousand tons per year,” Babayants explained.

Now, the company’s specialists are studying international experience and are developing technologies to achieve the level of quality necessary for domestic automobile plants. Thus, direct import substitution will be provided in the country, as today the country’s enterprises receive the necessary aluminum from South Korea.

Another promising project of this year is the creation of a warehouse for the storage of a slag dump. This construction is stipulated in accordance with the previously adopted "road map" to improve the environmental situation in the Sergeli district of Tashkent. In October this year, representatives of Uzvtortsvetmet formed a technical task for the Uzbek Research and Design Institute of Geology and Non-Ferrous Metallurgy for the construction of this facility.

“In addition, we plan to install lead treatment plants in a contractual way, in particular, we are talking about the environmental disposal of batteries. We are considering the SovPlim project in advance, it is a Russian-Czech enterprise with a branch in Tashkent. We are currently negotiating with them on the cost of the project,” Alexander Babayants said.

The modernization of production capacities also implies a reduction in energy consumption and a reduction in gas use.

“After modernization, special burners will use the so-called pure oxygen. This will reduce the use of natural gas by 35-45% and increase the efficiency of the entire production process. For this, it will be necessary to install an oxygen station or separate oxygen cylinders. These are modern technologies, here you need to carefully study all the nuances and choose exactly what we need and will work successfully in Uzbekistan,” the director of perspective development and investments of Uzvtorsvetmet said.

According to him, the new equipment will make production much cleaner. So, for example, most of the gases after modernization will remain in the furnace and burn there, thereby significantly reducing exhaust emissions into the air.

In general, Uzvtorsvetmet is currently negotiating the modernization of its facilities with ten leading manufacturing companies from Germany, Poland, China, Turkey and other countries. This will allow the company to produce competitive products in demand in many countries of the world.