AKIPRESS.COM - More than 100 stakeholders, energy policymakers, representatives of academia and civil society from the Republic of Uzbekistan, the European Union (EU) and its Member States, as well as international financial institutions gathered at the International Conference “Energy Efficiency in Uzbekistan: prospects and challenges” .

The Conference was organised jointly by the Agency for Strategic Reforms (ASR) under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan and the EU-funded SECCA project as part of the European Union – Uzbekistan Sustainable Energy Days 2023. It aimed at providing an action-oriented forum for decision-makers to share experiences in the implementation of energy efficiency policies in practice.

Energy efficiency has many economic, social and environmental benefits. It is one of the easiest and most cost-effective ways to combat climate change and reduce harmful to human health and quality of life emissions and pollutants. Improved energy efficiency will also lower utility bills for people, businesses, and industry, and provide new job and economic opportunities for the population.

Current subsidised energy tariffs in Uzbekistan do not encourage residential and industrial consumers to improve energy efficiency, even though it would make economic sense (IEA, 2022). Nevertheless, the energy sector transformation included in the Uzbek government’s structural and institutional reform package, introduced by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, is encouraging. Currently, the government is revising policies and implementation mechanisms to promote end-use energy efficiency. Therefore, now is the right time to discuss with key national stakeholders, international donors, and partners the way forward.

During the Conference, the participants discussed overall policy and legal framework for the promotion of end-use energy efficiency, data collection on energy consumption, energy audits in industry, energy efficiency in residential and public buildings, and other topics, and agreed to work together to develop and implement sustainable energy policies and projects in Uzbekistan.