Mirziyoyev meets foreign investors, announces $8 billion in green projects

On June 11, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev chaired the third plenary session of the Council of Foreign Investors under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan. The event, held at the International Congress Center in Tashkent, was attended by key figures, including Odile Renaud-Basso, President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), along with executives from leading global companies and financial institutions.

Attendees included representatives from Masdar, Indorama, ACWA Power, Vision Invest, DataVolt, Veon, Boeing, Air Products, SpaceX, Meta, John Deere, Franklin Templeton, Suez, EDF, Total Energies, Voltalia, Orano, Linde, Claas, Sojitz, Bomi, OTP Bank, Goldwind, Çalık, Çengiz, Aksa, JBIS, as well as the OECD, IFC, ADB, IsDB, and ITFC. The Council serves as a consultative platform to guide Uzbekistan’s investment, industrial, technological, and innovative development, while fostering transparent dialogue between the government and foreign investors.

President Mirziyoyev opened the session by expressing gratitude for the Council’s role in advancing Uzbekistan’s economic reforms and praised the success of the recent Tashkent International Investment Forum. He highlighted achievements from previous Council sessions, including a new cooperation format with international financial institutions and strengthened global partnerships.

The EBRD invested nearly $1 billion in Uzbekistan last year, making the country its largest regional partner. Total cooperation between private sector actors and international financial institutions now exceeds $1 billion. 

Significant progress has also been made in green energy. Companies like ACWA Power, Masdar, Linde, Shanghai Renewable Energy, and Total Energies have invested over $8 billion in projects ranging from renewable energy and waste processing to green hydrogen production and energy storage.

In the digital sector, DataVolt is building the region’s largest green data center, while Veon is developing an AI-based mobile super app tailored to Uzbekistan.

“I see this as an expression of the high confidence of foreign investors in our reforms and openness policy,” President Mirziyoyev stated.

Further proposals from Council members, such as the International Finance Corporation, Ernst & Young, Dentons, Knauf, and TBC, have helped shape over 10 laws, decrees, and resolutions aimed at aligning national legislation with international standards.

Importantly, the President announced that basic tax rates for businesses will remain unchanged until 2028. Over the past two years, 5,500 new foreign-invested enterprises have been established, raising the total to 16,000.

More than 40 proposals from investors were considered in preparation for the meeting, addressing issues such as tax stability, direct applicability of legislation, and enhanced private sector involvement in infrastructure.

Public-private partnership (PPP) projects worth $4.5 billion have been initiated this year in transport, energy, water, and irrigation. Additionally, work is underway to adopt international standards in financial reporting and corporate governance.

To implement these proposals, new working groups will be formed focusing on pledge legislation, corporate governance, tax administration, and personnel training for foreign companies. A proposal was also made to make the Council Secretariat a more independent legal entity.

Council members lauded Uzbekistan’s reform agenda and expressed strong support for continued collaboration.