Uzbekistan is collaborating with China to construct an underground natural gas storage facility, a strategic initiative aimed at securing a stable energy supply for the landlocked country, which has the highest population in Central Asia. This partnership represents a continued effort to attract foreign investment into its oil and gas sector.

Project Details and Location

The planned facility is expected to have a capacity of up to 1.5 billion cubic meters (Bcm) of natural gas and will be situated at the Korabayir field in the Kasan district of the Kashkadarya region. Preliminary geological studies have identified the field's 12th horizon as the optimal location for the storage facility's construction.

Expansion of Energy Cooperation

High-level talks were held in late October between Uzbekistan's Energy Ministry and the state-owned China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) to discuss expanding their energy partnership. The discussions, which included Uzbekistan's Energy Minister and the Chairman of CNPC, focused on launching new strategic projects. Key areas of discussion included:

• The establishment of the underground gas storage facility.
• The construction of the Central Asia-China gas pipeline.
• The development of gas condensate fields in the Bukhara region of southwestern Uzbekistan.

Additional topics covered were the commissioning of new oil and gas fields and the implementation of training programs for qualified specialists within Uzbekistan's oil and gas sector.

Commitments and Historical Context

During the talks, CNPC's chairman committed to leveraging the company's expertise to deepen cooperation with Uzbekistan in several areas, including energy infrastructure construction, oil and gas exploration and production, and new energy ventures. The Uzbek Energy Minister affirmed the importance of the partnership and pledged ministerial support to facilitate CNPC's business development in the country. CNPC has been active in Uzbekistan's oil and gas industry since 2006, providing services such as geophysical prospecting, well drilling, and logging. The companies have a history of collaboration on major projects, including the Silk Road project, the Mingbulak oilfield project, and the Uzbekistan-China Gas Pipeline project.

This material is an AI-assisted summary based on publicly available sources and may contain inaccuracies. For the original and full details, please refer to the source link. Based on materials by Sharon Foo. All rights to the original text and images remain with their respective rights holders.