A Chinese firm has won the tender to build a toll road between Tashkent and Samarkand, Uzbekistan's Transport Minister Ilkhom Makhkamov announced in an interview with the Uzbekiston 24 television channel, as reported by Spot.uz.
According to the minister, negotiations with the Chinese partner on the contract terms and construction timeline are currently underway. Makhkamov did not, however, disclose the name of the winning company. Uzbek authorities also plan to engage an international consulting firm to provide technical supervision, quality control, and design review throughout the project.
Construction is expected to begin in July. The new 282-kilometer highway is designed to relieve congestion on the existing main road while cutting travel time between the capital and Samarkand roughly in half — to around two and a half hours.
The project carries a price tag of approximately $2.2 billion, according to Alisher Mirsоatov, chairman of the National Bank of Uzbekistan. Work will be carried out in four phases, with financing drawn from Chinese lenders including China Development Bank, the Export-Import Bank of China, and Bank of Communications. Authorities are also considering a $200 million bridge loan — a short-term instrument used to cover funding gaps ahead of the primary financing — with a one-year maturity.
Foreign creditors will shoulder 85% of the total cost, with the remaining 15% coming from the state budget, said Otabek Ungboyev, head of the transport and logistics development project office at the Uzbek Presidential Administration.
