BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 11. Uzbekistan is advancing projects to modernize waste management, expand waste recycling, and generate electricity from municipal solid waste.
This was reflected in the statement by the press service of the Uzbek president.
According to the press service, the President Shavkat Mirziyoyev reviewed a presentation on investment projects aimed at improving waste management, recycling municipal waste and introducing technologies that can turn waste into an economic resource.
The projects are part of Uzbekistan’s efforts to promote circular economy principles and increase the use of modern technologies in waste management, according to the presidential administration.
Six waste-to-energy projects are scheduled to be implemented in Kashkadarya, Samarkand, Tashkent, Andijan, Fergana and Namangan regions in 2026–2027. The projects involve Chinese companies, with plants in Kashkadarya and Samarkand expected to begin operations in 2026 and facilities in the other regions in 2027.
Once fully operational, the six plants are expected to process 3.6 million tons of municipal solid waste annually and generate 1.6 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity.
Five additional projects involving companies from Singapore, South Korea and China are planned for Karakalpakstan and the Jizzakh, Surkhandarya, Bukhara and Khorezm regions. These facilities are expected to further expand the country’s waste-processing and waste-to-energy capacity.
During the presentation, the costs and land requirements associated with traditional landfills and waste-to-energy plants were compared, as well as their potential budget revenues and environmental impact.
Particular attention was given to measures aimed at minimizing the environmental impact of waste incineration, taking into account international experience and the obligations of investors.
Mirziyoyev instructed officials to accelerate implementation of the projects, create the necessary infrastructure and organizational conditions for investors, increase localization and strengthen workforce training in the sector.
"The Head of our state stressed the need to pay special attention to accelerating the implementation of projects, creating the necessary infrastructure and organizational conditions for investors, increasing the level of localization, as well as training qualified personnel in the field," the press service noted.
The president also ordered the creation of a talent pool of 1,000 specialists for waste-to-energy plants in cooperation with Green University, Samarkand State University and Karshi State University.
The planned projects are expected to support Uzbekistan’s transition toward a more sustainable waste-management system while increasing the use of waste as a source of energy and reducing reliance on landfills.
