BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 14. President of the Kyrgyz Republic Sadyr Japarov today took part in the commissioning ceremony of the first phase of the ROX Issyk-Kul solar power plant with a capacity of 175 megawatt-peak (MWp) in the village of Kyzyl-Oruk during his working visit to the Issyk-Kul region.
This is reflected in the statement of the press service of Kyrgyz president.
In his remarks, Sadyr Japarov described the project as a clear example of friendly relations, mutual trust, and successful investment cooperation between Kyrgyzstan and Vietnam.
He noted ROX Group’s extensive international experience in implementing renewable energy projects and praised the company’s contribution to improving the qualifications of local specialists and developing the country’s human resources.
Sadyr Japarov emphasized that in recent years Kyrgyzstan has placed special focus on the development of a green economy and the wider use of renewable energy sources.
“Our country has significant potential in solar, hydropower, and wind energy. This project is one of the major and strategically important initiatives aimed at making effective use of these opportunities,” he said, adding that approximately $1.5 billion in investment is planned for all stages of construction of the solar power plant, which will have a total capacity of 1,900 MWp.
“The investment volume for the first phase of the solar power plant, with a maximum capacity of 175 MW and commissioned today, amounts to $131 million. More than $80 million has already been invested to date.
More than 250 of our citizens were employed during the construction of the first phase. Following the plant’s full commissioning, around 150 permanent jobs will be created, with the majority to be filled by local specialists,” Sadyr Japarov said.
In his speech, the President also highlighted the company’s contribution to regional development. In addition to paying land-use taxes, ROX Group will allocate 1 percent of revenue generated from electricity sales to the budgets of the Toru-Aigyr and Tamchy rural municipalities in the Issyk-Kul region.
“To date, the plant has been successfully connected to the country’s Unified Energy System and has already supplied 28.7 million kilowatt-hours of electricity to the grid. Once the first phase reaches full capacity, annual electricity generation is expected to total around 295 million kilowatt-hours,” Sadyr Japarov said, noting that one of the project’s key features is its ability to store generated electricity and supply it to the Unified Energy System when needed.
“Therefore, this solar power plant is of particular importance for Kyrgyzstan. It will contribute to the modernization of the energy sector, diversification of energy sources, and reduction of dependence on hydropower. This is especially important as declining water resources make the development of solar energy one of the key factors in ensuring energy sustainability,” he said.
He particularly emphasized that the facility being commissioned today will make it possible to save up to 362 million cubic meters of water annually in the Toktogul Reservoir. Once the solar power plant reaches its full design capacity of 1,900 MW (273 million kWh per month), annual water savings could reach 3.9 billion cubic meters.
Concluding his remarks, Sadyr Japarov said the implementation of the project confirms Kyrgyzstan’s investment attractiveness and demonstrates the confidence of international partners in the country. The head of state reaffirmed the Kyrgyz Republic’s commitment to continuing to create favorable conditions for investors and to developing mutually beneficial cooperation in the interests of the country’s sustainable development.
