President Shavkat Mirziyoyev Outlines Priorities to Bring the Electrical Engineering Industry to a New Technological Level

During the meeting, the industry's achievements were discussed, and priorities were outlined for expanding production, introducing new technologies, manufacturing high-value-added products, and increasing export potential.

As noted, Uzbekistan's electrical engineering industry has undergone significant changes over the past decade. The sector has attracted $2 billion in investment, and 413 new production facilities have been launched. Production of more than 100 new types of products has been established, including household appliances, solar panels, electronic meters, and high-voltage transformers.

As a result, the industry's output has reached 50 trillion soums this year, compared with 1.7 trillion soums in 2016. Annual investment in the industry has reached $600 million, while exports have reached $1.6 billion. Over the past decade, exports have increased fourteenfold.

At the same time, the President emphasized that the existing potential and opportunities have yet to be fully utilized.

Solar and wind power plants, energy storage facilities, and major industrial and infrastructure facilities are being built across Uzbekistan. Over the next decade, the country plans to implement projects worth $450 billion in various sectors of the economy in cooperation with foreign partners. All of this creates a large and long-term market for electrical engineering products.

The President emphasized that the industry must go beyond expanding production capacity and achieve a major technological breakthrough.

For example, Uzbekistan plans to increase its energy storage capacity to 4.5 gigawatts by 2030. Foreign partners are ready to use locally manufactured products in these projects, but certain types of equipment are not yet produced in Uzbekistan.

In addition, annual demand for video surveillance equipment in the domestic market reaches $200 million, rising to more than $600 million when neighboring countries' markets are included. Demand for ATMs is also high. Last year alone, Uzbekistan imported 9,000 ATMs worth more than $50 million.

In this regard, officials were tasked with establishing domestic production in these areas and attracting new technologies and investors.

Significant opportunities for manufacturing high-value-added products were also identified in the regions. In particular, projects are planned to produce thin copper foil for energy storage batteries and electronics in Tashkent region, inverters and chargers for electric vehicles in Jizzakh, energy-efficient electric motors in Namangan, and uninterruptible power supply systems and server cooling systems in Karakalpakstan.

The President noted the need to use existing opportunities to establish production of office equipment and finished cable assemblies in Andijan, servers, interactive panels, and touch sensors in Tashkent city, as well as electronic circuit boards for televisions in Kashkadarya.

He also emphasized that these projects would not only meet domestic market demand but also create opportunities to increase exports of electrical engineering products to $5 billion.

To this end, new priorities have been identified for the industry's development.

Over the next three years, Uzbekistan plans to implement 164 projects worth a total of $11.6 billion in the electrical engineering and related industries.

These projects cover six main areas: energy infrastructure; production of cable products, transformers, and pumps; industrial robotics and instrumentation; electrical engineering for transport and electric vehicles; electronic components and microelectronics; and household appliances.

Responsible managers and major customers will be assigned to each area. The President instructed officials to attract anchor investors and strengthen cooperation with research centers and technical universities.

To develop high-tech industries, a Center for Technologies of the Future will be established in Nurafshan.

Enterprises operating at the center will be eligible for the benefits available to IT Park residents. Raw materials and components needed to manufacture robots, electronics, and technological equipment will be exempt from import duties. Income from research and development activities in these areas will also be exempt from taxation.

To strengthen cooperation between scientific research and industry, a national platform called New Industry will be developed. In addition, testing facilities for new products will be established in every region at research and development centers or technoparks. These facilities will help expand cooperation between large industrial enterprises and small businesses.

The Head of State instructed officials to prepare a draft resolution on the development of robotics and a comprehensive program to support the instrumentation and electronics industries.

During the dialogue, the President also emphasized the importance of engineering education and training qualified specialists as a key condition for the industry's technological development.

Currently, 20 students and researchers from technical universities are receiving training at electronics companies in Korea. Their number will soon increase to 100.

Starting next year, the "One Thousand Design Engineers" program will be launched. Under the program, Uzbek specialists will receive advanced training in Korea, Japan, China, Türkiye, and European countries. To attract highly qualified Uzbek professionals working for leading foreign companies back to Uzbekistan, they will be offered competitive salaries and favorable working conditions.

During the meeting, participants also discussed ways to expand financial opportunities for enterprises in the industry.

As noted, several domestic electrical engineering enterprises have secured $80 million in financing from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development to implement their projects. The bank has expressed its readiness to provide an additional $2–3 billion in loans to industrial enterprises.

To make full use of this opportunity, new support measures have been outlined to help enterprises prepare to access international financial markets, assess their performance, and cover the costs of hiring international consultants. In particular, each enterprise will be eligible for compensation of up to $50,000.

Additional opportunities will also be created for domestic manufacturers through the public procurement system.

Currently, the government purchases electrical engineering products worth 10 trillion soums annually. To make the process more convenient for entrepreneurs, a unified platform for publishing government procurement orders has been introduced. Starting January 1, three-year public procurement plans will also be published in advance.

At the same time, the public procurement system will move away from selecting products solely on the basis of the lowest bid price and introduce a life-cycle cost assessment system. Under this approach, evaluations will consider not only the purchase price but also energy consumption, repair, maintenance, and operating costs.

To expand the participation of domestic enterprises in the construction of energy facilities, a dedicated section for energy projects will be created on the "Shaffof Qurilish" platform, and contractor requirements will be adapted to the technological specifics of these projects.

New mechanisms have also been introduced to stimulate domestic demand for locally manufactured electrical engineering products.

In public-private partnership projects in the energy sector, at least 25 percent of products must be locally manufactured, including 70 percent of cable products. These requirements will now also apply to investment projects worth more than $10 million that receive special tax or other incentives or access to state resources on preferential terms.

To facilitate purchases for consumers and stimulate demand for domestically produced household appliances, a consumer loan program will be introduced at an annual interest rate of 18 percent for the purchase of locally manufactured refrigerators, washing machines, air conditioners, and other household appliances.

During the dialogue, the President heard proposals and initiatives from foreign investors and domestic entrepreneurs aimed at further developing the electrical engineering industry.