Tashkent:Uzbekistan is setting an ambitious goal to increase its annual copper production to 500,000 tons by the year 2030, as announced by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev during a visit to the NURA Electric facility in the Tashkent Region.

According to Trend News Agency, President Mirziyoyev highlighted that Uzbekistan had already commissioned its third copper processing plant this year, which is projected to elevate annual production to 300,000 tons. The country is now targeting an additional increase to 500,000 tons within the next decade.

The president also revealed plans to undertake projects worth $450 billion in collaboration with international partners over the coming decade. These initiatives are expected to generate a significant market for electrical engineering products. Furthermore, Uzbekistan is enhancing its solar and wind power generation capabilities, developing energy storage facilities, and launching major construction projects across various regions.

Mirziyoyev emphasized the necessity of integrating the nation's copper and critical mineral reserves with its skilled workforce, investment prospects, and cutting-edge technologies to advance the electrical engineering sector. Copper, known for its high electrical conductivity, durability, and corrosion resistance, is crucial to the electrical engineering industry, being utilized extensively in power cables, transformers, electric motors, generators, and other equipment.

The president underscored that increased domestic copper production is strategically vital for Uzbekistan's industrial growth, as investments in power generation, grid infrastructure, renewable energy, and energy storage are anticipated to sustain long-term demand for copper.