Tasks defined to cut construction materials costs

On May 14, President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev held a meeting to discuss priority objectives for further developing the building materials industry.

In recent years, the scales of construction works have considerably expanded in the country, hundreds of new houses, large industrial enterprises, cultural and sports facilities, roads and bridges have been erected.

Thus, over the past two years, the volume of construction works grew 1.7 times. Mostly, building materials of domestic production are used. At the same time, ceramic and chipboard, glass, wallpaper and other materials are imported. Meanwhile, Uzbekistan wields many opportunities to shore up the production of modern building materials and substitute imports.

Shavkat Mirziyoyev suggested that today, given the increasing amount of creative works, the building materials sector should become a leading industry, one of the pillars of economic growth. Through the introduction of energy-efficient technologies at enterprises, it is possible to save our natural wealth and reduce the cost of materials.

The Head of the state identified urgent tasks to at least double the production of building materials over the next five years.

It is necessary to enhance the development of non-metallic deposits, establish industrial processing of materials and diversify the industry as a whole.

The President paid special attention to issues related to the stable supply of enterprises of the sphere with energy at an affordable price. Using the example of a brick factory working on coal, Shavkat Mirziyoyev noted that it is possible to reduce the cost of production by 50 percent. It was stressed that the use of such modern technologies will save natural gas and cut the cost of products. It will be beneficial to the entrepreneur, the people, and the state.

In this regard, instructions were given towards the introduction of energy-saving technologies in building materials industry and reduction of production costs.

Uzbekistan’s building materials industry has a significant export potential. However, high transport costs affect the pricing of goods. In this respect, it was proposed to subsidize the transportation of export-bound products.

This year, four cement plants with a production capacity of 2 million tons each were commissioned in Karakalpakstan, Surkhandarya, Andijan and Navoi regions. By the end of the year, new plants with a capacity of 3.5 million tons will be commissioned, and the total potential of cement production will grow to 15 million tons. The President said that this will allow to cover domestic demand and ease the cost of cement.

During 2019-2020, more than a thousand projects worth over 17 trillion soums are planned to be implemented in the industry. Instructions were given on the allocation of loans from commercial banks and active attraction of foreign investments for these projects. The sale of low-profit enterprises to potential investors was also considered.

For further development of the building materials industry, highly qualified specialists are essential. However, quotas in higher education institutions do not correspond to the ever-increasing demand for the personnel. There is no relationship between the learning process and practice.

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev pointed to the need for increasing budget quotas for industry specialties, completely revising the procedure for organizing training internships in enterprises, and organizing advanced training centers on new technologies in cooperation with foreign companies.

Responsible officials presented reports on the issues discussed at the meeting.

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