Uzbekistan allocates $30 million for gas fields development
By Aynur Jafarova
The Uzbek Fund for Reconstruction and Development (FRDU) has allocated a $30 million loan to Uzbekneftegaz National Holding Company (NHC) for the integrated development of the gas fields in Gazli region.
The loan will be used to fund the construction of related infrastructure, in particular, compressor stations on the Kulbeshkak, Hodzhikazgan, Dayahatyn, Syuzma, Kumli and Chegarakum fields.
Although these fields were discovered in the early 1990's, they have not yet been developed. Confirmed reserves have not been disclosed too.
The development of the field will allow producing up to five billion cubic meters of gas per year by 2018. Along with the FRDU loan, the project will be funded through Uzbekneftegaz's own equity.
Currently, Uzbekistan is implementing a project for the integrated development of the gas fields in the Gazli region worth $914.19 million. The Uzbek president instructed in October 2012 to accelerate the completion of the project in 2018 against the previously planned 2020.
In particular, it was planned to complete the implementation of the project on the further development of the Shurtan field worth $265.3 million by 2013. A project on the further development of the Alan field worth $178.34 million should be completed in 2014.
A project to redevelop the East Berdakh field worth $192.9 million is scheduled to be completed four years ahead of the plan and a similar project in the Samantepe and South Urtabulak fields worth $186 million will be completed two years earlier.
The Gazli gas field which is one of the largest fields in the Bukhara-Khiva region has been operated since 1961. The transportation of gas from the Gazli field is conducted through the Bukhara-Ural and Central Asia - Center pipelines that export gas from Uzbekistan to the Urals and the European part of Russia. The initial gas reserves of the field were estimated about 500 billion cubic meters of gas.
The Uzbek Fund for Reconstruction and Development was established in May 2006 to finance and co-finance major investment projects included in the public investment program. The Fund was founded by the Uzbek government through the Ministry of Finance. The fund's authorized capital amounts to $10 billion.