Russia, Uzbekistan start construction of nuclear power plant

Russia and Uzbekistan have began the construction of a nuclear power plant in Uzbekistan on Thursday, the first of its kind in post-Soviet Central Asia, the Kremlin said, to help meet the growing regional demand for power.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev oversaw the start of the construction via video link from St Petersburg where they held talks on the sidelines of Putin's flagship annual economic forum, the Kremlin said late on Thursday.

The project is located in Uzbekistan's central-eastern Jizzakh Region, which borders both Tajikistan and Kazakhstan. The plant design combines two types of nuclear reactors: two large units with capacity to produce about 1,000 megawatts each and two small modular reactors that each generate about 55 megawatts.

The nuclear power plant, expected to meet around 15 per cent of Uzbekistan's power demand, is being constructed by the Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom using Russian technology, including small modular reactors, and a loan, Putin said.

"The fact that Russia and Uzbekistan are implementing such a truly flagship, high-tech project is a vivid example of the friendship and alliance between our two countries and demonstrates the successful and dynamic development of the Russian-Uzbek strategic partnership," Putin told Mirziyoyev.

Last month, Russia signed an agreement with Kazakhstan to build the first nuclear power plant in Central Asia's largest country at a cost of about $16.5 billion, partially covered by a major export loan from Moscow.

Moscow considers the Central Asian region, rich in energy resources and critical minerals, its traditional sphere of interests at a time when China and the United States are also expanding their influence there.