Turkey's Aksa Enerji Uretim AŞ (Aksa Energy) signed an agreement with the Ministry of Energy of Uzbekistan for the construction of a 240-megawatt natural gas combined cycle power plant in the capital Tashkent, the Turkish company announced in a statement Tuesday.

Under the contract with Uzbekistan, the Turkish firm will also operate and sell the electricity for 25 years.

Aksa Energy will also relocate the necessary equipment from Antalya Ali Metin Kazanci Natural Gas Combined Cycle Power Plant in Turkey to Uzbekistan for the plant's construction. Some of the transmission systems were left following the partial license cancellation in 2018.

When completed in 12 months, the plant is expected to produce 2 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity annually.

Commenting on the statement, Uzbekistan Energy Minister Alisher Sultanov said the use of its own natural resources is very important, and hoped that with the help of new investments, Uzbekistan's energy supply security would strengthen.

By Gulsen Cagatay

Anadolu Agency

energy@aa.com.tr