Uzbekistan is developing a program of coal mining development The coal industry of Uzbekistan is to get new guidelines for the development.

The Uzbek government entrusted Uzbekenergo SJSC and Uzbekugol PC jointly with concerned ministries and agencies to develop a development program for the enterprises under Uzbekugol and the coal industry in general for 2013-2018. The document should be developed within three months and submitted to the consideration of the Cabinet of Ministers.

The program will be focused on modernization, technical and technological extension of manufactures, development of coal marketing infrastructure by expanding the network of coal sales distribution centers of Uzbekugol PC.

Besides, the program will address the financial and economic recovery of enterprises and raising the profitability of coal mining through the rational use of occasionally extracted natural resources and product diversification.

A particular emphasis will be placed on training and retraining of qualified personnel for the coal industry.

Currently the Uzbek miners are completing the creation of a new system of coal sales to the population and budgetary organizations in Karakalpakstan, Bukhoro and Khorazm regions. Three regional distribution centers of Uzbekugol PC were established in these regions of Uzbekistan in the form of unitary enterprises with 12 branches. They specialize in the delivery of coal to the population and budget organizations. The similar territorial distribution centers and a storage coal depot were established in Farg’ona region as well.

A range of promising projects is underway in the industry. They include the creation of briquetting lines based on the coal distribution unit in the Farg’ona Valley and Angren. Briquettes are an economical and convenient fuel, used in the production and daily life for space heating. Portability of the briquettes makes them easy to transport and store. The first batch of coal briquettes has already been manufactured by the present time in the pilot plant to special technology.

Annually Uzbekistan produces more than 3.8 million tones of coal. The power sector is the major consumer of coal, the share of which makes up over 85% of total consumption.

Uzbekistan disposes of about 1.8 billion tones of coal reserves, including brown coal - 1.7 billion tones, and 46.3 million tones of mineral coal. The estimated resources amount to over 323.4 million tones of coal. Large coal reserves are concentrated in the southern regions, in Surkhondaryo and Qashqadaryo regions. Currently, the coal mining operates in three deposits: Angren brown coal deposit, Shargun and Boysun deposits of mineral coal. (Source: Uzbekistan Today newspaper)