News from the American-Uzbekistan Chamber of Commerce

Business Newsletter

Week in Review:

December 23, 2011 - December 30, 2011

In this issue

AUCC in Brief

LUKoil produces first gas in Uzbek Gissar field

UN Helps Uzbekistan to Equip Border with Afghanistan

Ferghana oil processing plant to modernize capacities

AUCC Office: Holiday Schedule

AUCC Members

AUCC in Brief

Established in 1993, the American-Uzbekistan Chamber of Commerce (AUCC) is a private, non-profit trade association representing interests of U.S. businesses ranging in size from small private enterprises to large, multinational corporations conducting business in Uzbekistan.

Our Mission: To advocate the views of the business community to ensure that private sector positions are considered during the development of key policies that impact American businesses and the future of U.S.-Uzbekistan relations.

Our Objective: To serve the needs of its members by strengthening commercial relations between the United States and Uzbekistan.

LUKoil produces first gas in Uzbek Gissar field

http://en.ria.ru of 12/30/2011

Russia's largest private oil company LUKoil accoplished its first gas production at the Dzharkuduk-Yangi Kyzylcha field, the largest deposit in Uzbekistan's South West Gissar block, the company said late on Thursday.

LUKoil plans to produce 1.1 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year at Dzharkuduk at an initial stage under a production sharing agreement with Uzbekistan.

The company will also invest over $1.2 billion to build an infrastructure at Dzharkuduk and launch gas production at the large Adamtash and Gumbulak fields. Gas production at Dzharkuduk is to reach 16 million cu m per day or 5.8 billion cu m per year, the Russian oil company said in its statement.

LUKoil is also developing the South Kyzylbairak and Koshkuduk oil fields in South West Gissar. According to preliminary information, production at the two deposits will amount to 90,000 tons of oil in 2011.

Proven reserves of the South West Gissar block amounted to 1.417 billion cubic feet of gas and 23 million barrels of oil and oil condensate as of January 1, 2011.

UN Helps Uzbekistan to Equip Border with Afghanistan

http://www.turkishweekly.net of 12/30/2011

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has transferred specialised equipment worth more than $1.2 million to customs based in the Surkhandarya region in the south of Uzbekistan (bordering Afghanistan and Tajikistan) and the Committee on the Protection of State Borders (CPSB), the press service of the State customs Committee (SCC) said.

Diesel generators, X-ray scanners, stationary and mobile radios and other equipment are being transferred to the checkpoint at the river port of Termez (Uzbek-Afghan border).

"The head of UNODC office in the region Asif Magid and U.S. Ambassador to Uzbekistan, George Krol participated on the equipment handover ceremony," said the SCC press service said.

According to the UN Office in Uzbekistan, the equipment was purchased as part of a UNODC project strengthening the checkpoint of the river port of Termez on the Uzbek-Afghan border. Funds in excess of $1.236 million were provided by the U.S. government.

In addition, non-specialised equipment worth over $400 thousand, computers, endoscopes, tool kits and individual common, platform and electronic scales was transferred to SCC and CPCB.

The Uzbek-Afghan border is an important part of NATO cargo supply route to Afghanistan.

Ferghana oil processing plant to modernize capacities

http://www.uzdaily.com of 12/30/2011

Ferghana oil processing plant will start modernization of its capacities in 2012. The projects' cost is US$115 million.

In particular, the company plans to implement project "Hydro elevation of oil fractions at the Ferghana refinery" with the cost of US$99 million. The project implementation will help to process up to 500,000 tonnes of oil fractions a year.

Within the second project, it is planned to introduce technology on processing of oil-slime. The project cost valued at US$6 million. After the project implementation, the Ferghana refinery will process up to 5,000 tonnes of oil-slime a year.

The plant will also reconstruct cleaning facilities with the cost of US$10 million. The project will allow to keep the volume of oil in sewage at the level of 1 milligramme per liter. The projects will be completed by mid-2014.

The projects will be financed due to own resources of Uzbekneftegaz national holding company and the loans of the Fund for Reconstruction and Development of Uzbekistan.

Ferghana oil processing plant was commissioned in 1959 and currently it produces about 60 types of oil products. The designed processing capacity of the plant is about 5.5 million tonnes of oil a year.

AUCC Office: Holiday Schedule

The AUCC office will be closed on Monday, December 26, 2011 and Monday, January 2, 2012.

Contact Information

The American-Uzbekistan Chamber of Commerce
1300 I Street, N.W., Suite 720W
Washington, DC 20005
phone: 202.509.3744
info@aucconline.com
www.aucconline.com

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