President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev held an expanded meeting during his visit to the Almalyk Mining and Metallurgical Combine (AGMK), dedicated to the fundamental transformation of the country's mining and metallurgical industry. The main outcome of the meeting was the announcement of the establishment of an Industrial Council under the chairmanship of the head of state, which will ensure systematic control over the implementation of projects with a total value of $22 billion.
The strategic course for accelerated industry development is dictated by the global technological transition: the rapid growth of IT, artificial intelligence, and "green" energy sectors has sharply increased the value of copper, uranium, lithium, and tungsten. According to the approved plan, by 2030 Uzbekistan must achieve qualitatively new production volumes: gold mining will increase to 175 tons, copper to 500,000 tons, uranium to 15,000 tons, and silver to 500 tons. This year, within the framework of 90 sectoral projects, it is planned to attract investments amounting to $2.2 billion.
Central attention at the meeting was paid to the activities of the Almalyk MMC. The President instructed to accelerate the construction of Copper Processing Plant (CPP) No. 3 and complete the design of CPP No. 4 in the shortest possible time with the involvement of authoritative international experts. Special emphasis was placed on the construction of a new copper smelter, which will become a logical technological continuation of current projects. For the Navoi MMC, priorities were set to expand the "Muruntau" mine and introduce technologies for extracting gold from complex ores.
In addition to increasing volumes, tasks were set to radically improve efficiency. The Industrial Council will monthly monitor the reduction of product costs, reduction of energy consumption, and implementation of digital solutions. An important direction will be import substitution: the volume of purchases from domestic producers this year should reach $2 billion. Issues of coal mining and development of production of high-value-added metals such as selenium, tellurium, and powder metallurgy products were also addressed.
Large-scale industrialization will require the attraction of 38,000 specialists, including 7,500 engineers. In this regard, Shavkat Mirziyoyev initiated a reform of specialized education: dual education is being introduced in universities, and scientific grants will be directed to solving applied production problems. The Industrial Council will become a link between the state, science, and business, ensuring quarterly monitoring of the transformation of the country's largest enterprises in accordance with international standards.
Earlier, Shavkat Mirziyoyev participated in the grand opening ceremony of Copper Processing Plant No. 3 (CPP-3). This large-scale project worth $2.7 billion became an important stage in strengthening the industrial potential of the republic and transitioning to deep processing of natural raw materials.
Source: podrobno.uz