Uzbekistan opens 128 oil and gas exploration blocks to foreign investors
Uzbekistan has prepared 128 oil and gas exploration blocks for foreign investors, with preliminary estimates suggesting they could contain 5.8tn cubic metres of natural gas and 560mn tonnes of liquid hydrocarbons.
President Shavkat Mirziyoyev announced the plans during a meeting with energy sector investors on October 16, outlining efforts to expand exploration, increase production efficiency and develop domestic processing facilities.
Azerbaijan’s SOCAR and Britain’s BP are already conducting exploration work across six investment blocks in the Ustyurt region.
The government plans to offer additional exploration areas to international companies, with projects selected based on competition, transparency and economic viability.
Mirziyoyev also stressed the importance of processing natural gas into higher-value products rather than using it primarily for electricity generation.
Uzbekistan’s synthetic liquid fuel complex in Kashkadarya currently produces up to 1.5mn tonnes of fuel and other products annually.
The president confirmed that a methanol-to-olefins (MTO) project in Bukhara, designed to produce polyethylene, polypropylene and PET products, would proceed.
Uzbekistan also plans to modernise its oil refineries in Bukhara and Fergana.
The government is seeking investor proposals for projects that use modern technologies, meet environmental standards and demonstrate commercial viability.
Uzbekistan plans nationwide LPG supply reform in 2027
Uzbekistan also intends to transfer the supply of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to private operators nationwide in 2027, ending the sector’s reliance on a state-controlled distribution system.
Currently, around 3.8mn households across the country use LPG.
The government has begun introducing market mechanisms into the sector, with a pilot project launched in Andijan region.
Under the pilot programme, private companies can import LPG and supply it directly to households in gas cylinders at market prices. The arrangement operates alongside the existing state distribution system.
The initiative was introduced under a presidential resolution signed on September 12, which established a phased transition towards private participation in LPG supplies.
Mirziyoyev said the nationwide expansion must prioritise uninterrupted deliveries, safety and service quality.
