Alisher Sultanov: The state will eventually cease to regulate electricity prices

In the future, the state will refuse to regulate electricity tariffs, Uzbekistan’s Energy Minister Alisher Sultanov said at an interview with Kun.uz.

“In the future, we will switch to a system in which the state will not set tariffs. They must be regulated by the market and set by companies producing the product,” Sultanov said.

According to the Energy Minister, the authorities strive to ensure that this happens as soon as possible, especially, since the legislative framework has already been created, there is nothing to hinder it.

“There are a lot of factors that determine the natural occurrence of the energy market in the country,” Sultanov noted. 

“First of all, the offer should be ahead of the demand and mentality of the society should be ready for this. We have to get away from the socialist economy that existed in our country, some incomprehensible limits, both for production and consumption. All this should be determined by the market,” the minister added.

It is expected that until 2023, the tariff setting method should be gradually introduced, and from 2023, the established electricity tariffs will remain unchanged for at least three years.

He stressed that “an entrepreneur should know that he has some stability in the near future. He must understand the volume of his production, the marketing component, the solvency of the enterprise”.