Uzbekistan’s gas import bill rises 50%, export earnings fall by a third

17:073694 min

Uzbekistan spent $1.605 billion on natural and artificial gas imports, including liquefied gas, in January–September 2026, a 49.9% increase from the same period last year. Export earnings from gas fell by 34.5% to $357.9 million, widening the gap between import and export values to nearly $1.25 billion.

The figures, published by the National Statistics Committee, show that the value of gas imports rose from about $1.07 billion in the first nine months of 2025. The increase came despite a decline in domestic natural gas production, which fell by 16.4% year on year to 27 billion cubic meters.

September accounted for a particularly large share of import spending. Uzbekistan imported $389.2 million worth of gas during the month, up 88.8% from August’s $206.1 million and the highest monthly figure recorded so far this year. The September total represented about 24% of the nine-month import bill.

Import values fluctuated sharply throughout the period. Purchases stood at about $247 million in June before falling to $38.3 million in July and rebounding to $206.1 million in August.

The reported import category covers natural and artificial gas, including propane. Propane imports alone reached $152.2 million in January–September, 3.8 times the value recorded a year earlier.

Russia and Turkmenistan remain Uzbekistan’s main natural gas suppliers. However, the National Statistics Committee has not published a breakdown of import values or physical volumes by country, making it difficult to establish how much each supplier contributed to the increase.

Gas exports moved in the opposite direction. Their value fell from about $546.4 million in January–September 2025 to $357.9 million this year. In September, exports were worth $35.6 million, down from $42.6 million in August.

Export earnings peaked at $92.7 million in April before falling to $73.5 million in May and $30 million in June. They recovered to $46.8 million in July, then declined again over the following two months.

The resulting negative trade balance for gas reached $1.247 billion in the first nine months, compared with about $524.5 million a year earlier. In September alone, the difference between import and export values amounted to $353.6 million, more than twice August’s $163.5 million.

These figures reflect the monetary value of gas trade, not the difference between the physical volumes imported and exported. They should therefore not be interpreted as showing that Uzbekistan imported a specific volume of gas in excess of its exports.