Uzbekistan’s natural gas production fell by 15% in the first quarter of 2026, adding pressure to an energy system already strained by rising demand, aging infrastructure, and lower hydrocarbon output.
The country produced 9.6 billion cubic meters of natural gas in January-March, down from 11.3 billion in the same period last year. The figures are based on data from Uzbekistan’s National Statistics Committee, which also listed declines in oil, coal, and gas condensate production.
Oil output fell to 157,300 tons in the first quarter, compared with 160,800 tons in the same period last year. Coal production declined from 1.2 million tons to 1.1 million tons, while gas condensate output fell even more sharply, dropping from 296,600 tons to 242,300 tons. Motor gasoline production rose to 313,200 tons, while diesel output increased to 280,900 tons.
The latest data reflect a longer shift in Uzbekistan’s energy balance. Uzbekistan was long a net gas exporter, supported by large Soviet-era fields, a broad domestic gas network, and access to the Central Asia-China pipeline system. That position has weakened as older fields have declined and domestic use has grown.
Uzbekistan now has to cover demand from households, power plants, industry, and transport while trying to modernize the sector. That task is getting harder. The country’s permanent population reached 38.2 million people as of January 1, 2026, according to official statistics, leading to more strain on the grid.
Imports have risen sharply to meet these needs. Uzbekistan spent $360.5 million on natural gas imports in the first quarter of 2026, a 2.2-fold increase from the same period last year. Meanwhile, gas export revenues fell to $36.7 million, down from $94.3 million a year earlier.
That shift has regional weight. Uzbekistan imports gas from Russia and Turkmenistan. Russian gas reaches Uzbekistan through Kazakhstan, using a Soviet-era pipeline route that once moved gas in the opposite direction. Uzbekistan began receiving Russian gas in 2023, as Moscow sought new markets after losing much of its European gas business. The Times of Central Asia previously reported that Russian gas exports to Uzbekistan rose by about 30% in 2025, reaching more than 7 billion cubic meters through the Central Asia-Center pipeline system.
Tashkent and Moscow have since discussed larger energy supplies. In April, Uzbek Prime Minister Abdulla Aripov and Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin agreed to increase deliveries of Russian oil and gas to Uzbekistan. The talks also covered wider cooperation in energy, industry, transport, and agriculture.
More imports can help Uzbekistan avoid shortages, especially in winter, while supporting power generation and reducing pressure on households. But they also bring new costs, with higher imports weighing on the trade balance and increasing reliance on outside suppliers. That is a sensitive issue for a country trying to expand its domestic industry and keep energy prices stable.
The government is trying to slow the production decline. Uzbekneftegaz has said that exploration work added 2 billion cubic meters of gas reserves and 40,000 tons of liquid hydrocarbon reserves in the first quarter. The company plans to drill and commission 22 new wells in the second quarter and repair 31 existing wells, according to reporting by Kun.uz.
Those steps may help stabilize supply, but they do not address the wider problem. New wells can offset part of the decline from older fields, and repairs can raise daily output, but the national trend still points downward, and the system needs heavy investment in production, storage, pipelines, and distribution.
Aging infrastructure is another pressure point. In March, the World Bank approved support for gas network improvements in Uzbekistan, stating that the country’s gas infrastructure had deteriorated because of underinvestment in maintenance and repairs. Without upgrades, gas losses could reach 1.75 billion cubic meters by 2030, cutting revenue by $228 million.
Network repairs are less visible than new power plants, but they can free up large volumes of gas without new extraction.
Tashkent is also trying to reduce the role of gas in electricity generation. The government has moved quickly on solar, wind, hydropower, battery storage, and grid projects. TCA previously reported on Uzbekistan’s wider renewable-energy buildout, including green-energy output reaching 9 billion kilowatt-hours in 2025.
In December 2025, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev launched and commissioned a new package of energy facilities. The presidential website said the facilities would generate 15 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity a year once fully operational and reduce natural gas consumption by nearly 7 billion cubic meters. The package included ten energy-storage systems with a total capacity of 1,245 megawatts. Batteries can store power from solar and wind plants, then release it when demand rises, reducing the need for gas-fired backup generation at peak hours.
Uzbekistan’s clean-energy targets are also tied to lower gas use. Its third nationally determined contribution under the Paris Agreement says renewable energy capacity should exceed 50% of total generation capacity by 2030. It also projects that natural gas consumption could fall by 30.26 billion cubic meters in 2030.
Those targets are ambitious, particularly given that demand is rising. Uzbekistan wants faster industrial growth, more domestic processing, and higher living standards. That means more factories, housing, cooling, heating, transport, and digital infrastructure. New renewable capacity may be needed to meet extra demand before gas use can be sharply reduced.
The gas figures from the first quarter show why the timetable is tightening. Uzbekistan is moving quickly on renewable energy, but gas still anchors the country’s power system, heating network, and industrial base.
The next test will come before winter. If production keeps falling through 2026, Tashkent will need more imports, faster repairs, lower export volumes, or swifter savings from new energy projects. Each option carries a cost, and none offers a quick fix.
Uzbekistan’s energy strategy now rests on four linked tasks: slowing the fall in gas output, reducing waste in old infrastructure, managing imports, and bringing new power capacity online. The first-quarter numbers show that there is little room for delay.
