OREANDA-NEWS. August 22, 2014. A regular session of the Subcommittee for Energy Cooperation of the Uzbek-Chinese Intergovernmental Committee for Cooperation took place at the International Business Center in Tashkent.

The event was attended by heads of ministries and other government agencies, companies and corporations of Uzbekistan and China, specializing in such areas as foreign economic relations, banking and finance, and overall economic, hydrocarbon, energy and geology sectors.

Speaking at the session, Minister of Economy of the Republic of Uzbekistan G.Saidova stressed in particular that the interaction between our two nations has been steadily advancing across many spheres, including in trade, economy, investments, energy, whose important normative foundations are built on agreements reached during meetings of leaders of the two countries. The participation of President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov in the 4th Summit of the Conference for Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia that took place earlier in May and his meeting with President of the People’s Republic of China Xi Jinping epitomized a new phase in the evolution of strategic partnership between the two countries.

The Sino-Uzbek ties have been progressing in all areas on the basis of the Treaty on Partnership Relations of Friendship and Cooperation, the Joint Declaration on the Establishment of Strategic Partnership as well as the Joint Declaration on the Further Development and Enhancement of Bilateral Relations of Strategic Partnership. China prevails among the trade-economic and investment partners of our country. Founded in 2011, the Uzbek-Chinese Intergovernmental Committee for Cooperation facilitates the enlargement of trade-economic and investment ties, the interaction in the energy, hydrocarbon, transportation and scientific-technical spheres.

Uzbekistan and the PRC enjoy the most-favored-nation regime in their economic relations. The volume of bilateral trade turnover has been constantly on the rise. In January-May 2014, the indicator amounted to around 2.2 billion US dollars. 482 joint ventures established with the participation of Chinese capital operate in Uzbekistan. More than seventy companies from the PRC have their representative offices in our country.

The premium business environment created in the nation, the privileges and the system of guarantees directed at securing the interests of foreign investors raise the significance and confidence of overseas entrepreneurs on the Uzbek economy.

Chinese businesspeople are active in a range of economic zones created in our country. Notably, more than fifteen joint projects with the engagement of direct investments worth 50 million dollars are envisioned to be implemented this year in the Jizzakh Special Industrial Zone.

The cooperation with the PRC has been consistently enhancing also in the fuel and energy complex. That all four stripes of the gas pipeline Central Asia-China pass through the land of Uzbekistan is suggestive of the high level of mutual trust and of the promising partnership in the hydrocarbon industry.

Our two countries regard the construction and launch of the fourth line of the Central Asia-China gas pipeline as an important project with strategic significance. Within the frameworks of the state visit by the President of the People’s Republic of China Xi Jinping to our country in September 2013, a document was signed to launch the construction of this line with a capacity of supplying 30 billion cubic meters of natural gas a year. That is expected to allow for a greater expansion of export of natural gas and its transit from Central Asia to the PRC.

Chinese companies have been energetic in their involvement in geological prospecting and development of prospective hydrocarbon deposits. In particular, the China National Petroleum Corporation participates in the implementation of a project for deep reprocessing of natural gas at the Mubarek Gas Chemical Complex.

Our country has also been enthusiastically cooperating with the China Development Bank and the Eximbank. China Development Bank takes part in diverse projects in the energy sector, transportation, telecommunications, healthcare, education and other areas for a total of over 3.8 billion dollars.

Along with the development of oil and gas deposits, deep reprocessing of hydrocarbons is underway in our country’s oil and gas sector, and the types of goods produced from them have been growing in number. As a result of construction of such enterprises, petro- and gas-chemical industry built on cutting-edge technologies has been advancing.

Chinese businesspeople noted that the economic stability in Uzbekistan is acknowledged in the international arena, and expressed willingness to take part in major projects realized in our country.

“Uzbekistan has a great potential in the sphere of economy and energy,” says Wu Xinxiong, China’s Vice Minister of National Development and Reforms Commission and Director of the National Energy Administration. “The mutually advantageous bonds between our two countries in these spheres are being cemented. Also, solar and wind energy is another promising dimension of our interaction. The current meeting of the committee serves the joint elaboration and realization of prospective projects.”

At the forum the participants discussed in detail the current state and prospects of cooperation between Uzbekistan and China in the economy, hydrocarbons and energy sectors, as well as issues concerning the further enhancement and consolidation of bilateral relations, the implementation of mutually beneficial joint schemes.