EBRD Provides $199.96m to Improve Irrigation Efficiency in Uzbekistan’s Fergana Valley

EBRD Provides $199.96m to Improve Irrigation Efficiency in Uzbekistan’s Fergana Valley

(IN BRIEF) The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is providing a sovereign loan of up to $199.96 million to Uzbekistan to upgrade the irrigation system in the heavily populated Fergana Valley. The funds will be used to modernize 118 outdated pumping stations with energy-efficient pumping units and related infrastructure. The improved system will increase water efficiency, reduce losses, and reduce annual electricity consumption by 277,000 MWh and CO2 emissions by 129,000 tonnes. The project is expected to increase the irrigated area by almost 32,000 hectares and potentially create jobs for 19,000 people in Uzbekistan’s most populous region. This project aligns with Uzbekistan’s commitments under the Paris Agreement and its strategic vision for sustainable water use. So far, the EBRD has invested almost €3.71 billion in 121 projects across Uzbekistan.

(PRESS RELEASE) LONDON, 1-Mar-2023 — /EuropaWire/ — The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a multilateral developmental investment bank, announces that it has allocated a sovereign loan of up to US$ 199.96 million to Uzbekistan to upgrade the outdated irrigation system in the Fergana Valley, the most densely populated part of Central Asia. The region depends heavily on freshwater withdrawals from the Syr Darya river, which is affected by global warming.

The EBRD funds will be used to modernize 118 obsolete pumping stations, which were built in the Soviet era, across the Uzbek part of the Fergana Valley. The project will replace the outdated pumping equipment with modern, energy-efficient units and upgrade the associated infrastructure. This upgrade will help to improve the efficiency of the regional irrigation water conveyancing system, which is vital to a region dependent on irrigated agriculture, given its relatively low annual rainfall.

The modernized system will ensure better control over the flow of water and reduce losses. The replacement of outdated pumps with modern equipment is expected to decrease annual electricity consumption by 277,000 MWh and reduce annual CO2 emissions by 129,000 tonnes, which will have an immediate environmental impact.

Zsuzsanna Hargitai, EBRD Managing Director for Central Asia, stated, “At the EBRD, we help change people’s lives. By supporting such green projects, we not only improve the efficiency of water use vital to this region, but also help increase the irrigated area by almost 32,000 hectares, potentially creating jobs for around 19,000 people in Uzbekistan’s most populous region.”

Uzbekistan has developed a strategic vision for the sustainable use of water, in line with its commitments under the Paris Agreement. This includes the Water Management Sector Development Concept for 2020-30.

The EBRD’s loan to Uzbekistan marks an important step towards sustainable water use in the region. The project will not only improve the efficiency of the irrigation system but also contribute to job creation and environmental protection.

Media contact:

Tel: +44 207 338 7805
Email: press@ebrd.com

SOURCE: EBRD