Uzbekistan Strengthens Its Domestic Building Materials Industry

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has ordered comprehensive measures to strengthen Uzbekistan’s building materials industry. The goal is to significantly increase the use of locally produced building materials in the country’s growing number of housing, infrastructure, and tourism projects.

Mirziyoyev chaired a government meeting via videoconference on June 25 and highlighted a direct link between the sector’s development and the implementation of the agreements signed at the fifth Tashkent International Investment Forum (TIIF 2026). At the forum, Uzbekistan concluded 177 investment agreements with foreign partners totaling 43 billion U.S. dollars.

“Every agreement must be translated into concrete projects, new jobs, and competitive products,” the president stated, instructing the relevant authorities to accelerate the implementation of investment commitments and improve the quality of projects in all regions of the country.

Government representatives acknowledged that investment has been unevenly distributed so far. Four regions have attracted about half of all investment over the past five years, while the return on investment varies significantly between different parts of the country.

To improve investment planning, 14 think tanks, as well as 37 research institutes and universities, were tasked with analyzing the economic potential of all districts and developing investment proposals for twelve strategic economic sectors.

Building Materials Production Is Growing Rapidly

Over the past ten years, approximately 12 billion U.S. dollars have flowed into the building materials industry. This has led to the creation of more than 4,000 new production facilities.

Domestic manufacturers now cover approximately 98% of the demand for building materials in residential and industrial construction. Ten years ago, this share was only 30 to 40%, when production was largely limited to cement, bricks, glass, and simple aggregates.

The sector’s production value rose from 7 trillion UZS to 53 trillion UZS during the same period. Exports reached 1.2 billion U.S. dollars last year.

According to government data, domestic production capacity is now sufficient to fully meet national demand for more than 20 key construction products. These include, among others, cement, glass, ceramics, basalt products, aerated concrete blocks, as well as, increasingly, high-quality insulation materials, composite materials, and materials for interior finishing.

Major projects are driving demand

As part of the long-term housing construction program, the number of apartments built annually is set to rise to 280,000 by 2040, nearly doubling the current figure. At the same time, the number of housing projects in the “Yangi Uzbekistan” program is set to increase from the current 61 to 120.

Commercial construction is also growing rapidly. Between 20 and 25 million square meters of new building space are now being completed each year. This creates an estimated annual demand for construction materials worth around 10 billion U.S. dollars.

With the implementation of the major projects announced at this year’s investment forum, demand is expected to rise further.

Among the most important projects are the nuclear power plant in the Jizzakh region, a fourth copper processing plant in the Tashkent region, the new Tashkent International Airport, a 55,000-seat stadium in New Tashkent, and the 282-kilometer-long expressway between Tashkent and Samarkand.

Fair competitive conditions for domestic manufacturers

A central topic of discussion at the meeting was competition between imported and locally produced construction materials.

Foreign investors involved in major projects had called for value-added tax exemptions on imported construction materials. Domestic manufacturers, however, argue that equal tax conditions are necessary to ensure fair competition.

Mirziyoyev therefore instructed the government to draft a regulation aimed at establishing identical tax conditions for imported and domestic building materials in large-scale investment projects. In doing so, the government aims to strengthen the domestic industry without compromising the country’s attractiveness to foreign investors.

In addition, regional authorities were instructed to ensure that at least 95% of the construction materials for newly built hotels under the two-year tourism promotion program come from domestic production.

Energy Efficiency as a New Priority

Another key focus of the discussions was energy efficiency. According to the president, modern thermal insulation materials and energy-efficient windows could reduce heating and electricity consumption in new residential buildings by up to 30%.

As an example, government representatives cited a pilot project in the Kamashi district, which was developed in collaboration with French and British engineering firms. By using exclusively energy-efficient domestic building materials, construction costs were reduced by 20% and heating and cooling costs by up to 30%. The model is set to be expanded to 33 cities and districts later this year.

Government Pushes for Export Initiative

Mirziyoyev also called for a stronger export push. Neighboring countries import construction materials worth approximately 13 billion U.S. dollars annually. According to government estimates, the Central Asian markets alone could absorb additional exports from Uzbekistan totaling around 440 million U.S. dollars.

The president also ordered the construction of demonstration projects for energy-efficient housing, as well as investment roadshows in Azerbaijan, Georgia, Russia, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan, to raise international awareness of Uzbek building materials and construction technologies.

Modernization Instead of Capacity Expansion

Although production capacities for cement, glass, basalt products, and ceramic tiles are expected to meet domestic demand until at least 2035, the industry is to focus more strongly in the future on technological modernization and the manufacture of higher-value products, rather than merely expanding production capacities.

Companies that invest in energy-efficient production facilities will receive government subsidies amounting to 7% of the interest costs for loans in Uzbek sum and 4% for foreign-currency loans.

In addition, the government plans to introduce a digital platform for national and international quality certifications. At least 50 companies are to be supported in obtaining internationally recognized certificates before the end of this year.