Masdar inaugurates 100-megawatt Nur Navoi solar plant in Uzbekistan

Abu Dhabi's renewable energy company Masdar opened a 100-megawatt Nur Navoi solar plant in Uzbekistan. It is the first financed independent power producer (IPP) solar project in the country.

The plant will power 31,000 households and offset 150,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide on an annual basis, once operational, Masdar said.

"In the next five years, we plan to increase our economy’s growth rate by 1.5 times, and bring GDP to at least US $100 billion. Thousands of new industrial enterprises, both medium and large will be launched, and electricity demand is set to reach 100 billion kilowatt-hours - 30 billion more than now. Therefore, we have very big plans for new reforms and projects in the electric power industry. In the next five years, 19 projects worth US$6.5 billion will be launched to create 11,500 MW of new capacity,” said Shavkat Mirziyoyev, the President of Uzbekistan, during the inauguration ceremony.

Nur Navoi is the first Masdar project to begin operations in Uzbekistan.In July, Masdar signed agreements to develop two PV projects there for a combined capacity of 440 MW.

Commercial operation of the projects, which will be located in the Samarkand and Jizzakh regions of Uzbekistan, are  expected to begin within the first quarter of 2023.