Uzbekistan has witnessed a dramatic increase in its natural gas imports in 2024, with volumes nearly quintupling compared to the previous year. According to the report from the State Statistics Agency, the value of imported gas from January to July 2024 reached $983.7mn, significantly surpassing the $201mn recorded during the same period in 2023. This substantial rise highlights Uzbekistan's growing demand for natural gas, driven by both domestic consumption and possibly shifts in energy strategy.
The surge in natural gas imports is particularly evident in the figures for July 2024. During this month alone, Uzbekistan imported gas worth $174.2mn, a staggering 174-fold increase from July 2023, when the country’s imports were a mere $1mn. This sharp escalation marks July as a pivotal month, reflecting the country’s intensified energy needs. A detailed monthly breakdown of the 2024 gas import data reveals the upward trajectory throughout the year. Starting with $35.6mn in January, the import value steadily rose to $131.1mn in February and peaked at $193.6mn in March. Although there was a slight dip in April to $102.6mn, the figures rebounded to $108.4mn in May and surged again to $166.3mn in June.
As reported by Daryo earlier Uzbekistan plans to increase its import of gas from Russia to 11bn cubic meters in 2025, as part of a broader collaboration with Russia to enhance the Central Asia-Center pipeline network. This development follows a contract initiated in October 2023, where Uzbekistan began receiving 2.8bn cubic meters of Russian gas annually. The agreement, valued at approximately $448mn was highlighted during discussions between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Uzbekistan's President Shavkat Mirziyoyev in May this year. Efforts to expand gas capacity involve key Russian energy firms like Gazprom, Lukoil, Tatneft and Zarubezhneft which are also engaged in various energy projects within Uzbekistan.
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