Uzbekistan plans to reform its energy system "from scratch," focusing on modernizing infrastructure down to individual households. This was announced on July 27 by Sardor Isaqulov, the new chairman of the management board of the regional power grids company "Hududiy elektr tarmoqlari," following a meeting with the president.
According to Isaqulov, the situation with power supply interruptions and quality remains "very deplorable." "Today, our respected president said we must reform the system from scratch. We will build the energy sector from scratch," he stated in an interview with Uzbekistan 24 TV channel.
Isaqulov emphasized that targeted programs will provide necessary assistance to responsible persons down to each household. The meeting criticized the placement of transformers and overhead power lines without considering load centers, resulting in unbalanced equipment installation that often did not match actual consumption.
Heads of energy companies will be assigned to each region. They will be personally sent to districts with high accounts receivable and frequent outages. Work is to be organized on a targeted basis — for each transformer and, in gas supply, each gas distribution point.
"These tasks will be unconditionally fulfilled by September. We have four months before the autumn-winter season. In four months, we can accomplish a lot. Therefore, each manager has been given a clear task to open their eyes and fight the factors causing power outages so that such interruptions do not occur in the future," Isaqulov said.
Energy Minister Sherzod Khodjaev announced that system employees should spend 90% of their working time directly in mahallas, regions, and infrastructure facilities. He called preparing accurate calculations necessary for uninterrupted power supply, economic development, and increasing public satisfaction a key task.
Within three months, the Ministry of Energy must submit a draft decision on improving the sector. "We must accelerate the introduction of market principles into the system. We have been tasked with introducing competition mechanisms in product supply, starting with liquefied gas. The main tasks — network renewal, debt reduction, loss reduction — all must be carried out together, shoulder to shoulder," Khodjaev said.
Special attention will be paid to digitalization. This includes not only automation of calculations, electricity and gas meters, and billing systems but also personnel management. Full digitalization of task assignment, report acceptance, daily work accounting, and productivity assessment is planned.
Khodjaev also announced a revision of the personnel training system. Broader coverage of energy students with dual education in cooperation with universities and industry enterprises is envisaged. In Karakalpakstan, Bukhara, and Navoi regions, one technical school each will implement the experience of Shirin city in Syrdarya region.
This model involves a major foreign investor equipping the educational institution with laboratories and training grounds for training specialists in new areas at its own expense, with curricula revised based on international standards.
"Overall, it has been determined that very big changes must occur in the system, and as a result of these changes, the system's contribution to the economy will increase and public morale will improve," the minister said.
In 2022, Khodjaev, then Deputy Minister of Energy, spoke about plans to reform the energy sector. At the July 27 meeting, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev criticized the management of the energy sector. According to him, despite allocating 30 trillion soums to upgrade networks, substations, and equipment in recent years, accidents and prolonged outages persist. Losses in power grids reached 17.2% or 4.8 billion kWh in half a year, while 300,000 gas and 234,000 electricity meters do not transmit data to automated systems.
Following the meeting, the heads of the Ministry of Energy and Hududiy elektr tarmoqlari were replaced, and several heads of major energy companies were given probationary periods until the end of the year. A pilot system of targeted work in each mahalla, transformer, and gas distribution point will be launched in Yangiyul district, after which the experience is planned to be replicated nationwide.
Source: www.gazeta.uz