Jizzakh Petroleum has announced substantial progress in the development of a new methane-to-olefin (MTO) gas chemical complex in Uzbekistan.

Jizzakh Petroleum is a major investor in a project in the Bukhara region of Uzbekistan, which will use domestic feedstock to monetize natural gas through the production of export-oriented and high-value-added products on demand within the country.

The formation of a future gas chemical complex would contribute to the growth of the domestic textile industry, as well as import substitution and increased production in the automotive and construction industries.

Based on in-depth studies and evaluations performed with partner Wood, six technology licensing agreements have been signed with leading international companies.

These include agreements with Chemtex (Invista) (US) for PET technology; Scientific Design (US) for MEG; Versalis (Italy) for LDPE/EVA; Haldor Topsoe (Denmark) for Methanol; Grace (US) for PP; and Sinopec (China) for 5-007O technology.

These milestones follow the announcement on site selection in September 2020 and the completion of marketing and feasibility studies by consultants and technical partners-IHS Markit, Nexant and Wood.

In addition, talks have been held with Marco Polo International (USA) and KTM Kimyevi Maddeler (Turkey) on the disposal of polymer materials.

According to Alisher Sultanov, Minister of Energy of the Republic of Uzbekistan, "The Government of Uzbekistan welcomes the progress made in relation to this Bukhara complex. We see this project as a model for potential cooperation between Uzbek business and international partners. This relationship is the cornerstone to our Government's accelerated development agenda, in particular the Ministry of Energy. Having completed the site selection only last year, we are pleased that negotiations with Jizzakh Petroleum have led so quickly to this series of agreements with major international licensors."