New electricity prices in practice: who pays how much?

Starting from May 1, 2025, new tariffs for electricity and natural gas will come into force in Uzbekistan. After the introduction of the new prices, wide discussions began among the public. In this regard, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Economy and Finance Jamshid Kuchkarov gave an official explanation on energy tariffs at a meeting held in the Legislative Chamber of the Oliy Majlis on June 3.

Kuchkarov noted that the tariffs have been increased at a low level and these changes will not put a large part of the population in a serious difficult situation.

How much will you pay for 300 kWh?

According to figures cited by a government representative, there are 7.6 million electricity consumers in Uzbekistan. 70 percent of them consume no more than 300 kWh of electricity per month.

“The monthly payment for a family consuming 300 kWh will increase by 20,000 soums. Previously, it was 180,000 soums, but now it will be 200,000 soums,” the minister said. According to him, this amount is very small compared to the current costs of mobile communications. “Each family has at least three mobile phones, and at least 35,000 soums are spent on each of them,” he stressed.

Features of tariffs

The updated tariffs for 2024 are as follows:

• The price for consumption up to 200 kWh has increased from 450 soums to 600 soums.
• The tariff for consumption between 201 and 500 kWh has been reduced from 900 soums to 800 soums.

According to Kuchkarov, if a family consumes 500 kWh per month, the total monthly payment will not change. That is, if previously 360 thousand soums were paid for 500 kW, now the same amount will be paid.

Small number of high consumers

According to Kuchkarov, there are very few households in the country that use more than 1,000 kWh of electricity per month. Therefore, the tariffs applied to high consumers will not affect a large segment of the population.

Savings results

In May-December 2024, electricity consumption decreased by 10.6% compared to the same period in 2023. In addition, 1.3 billion kWh of electricity was saved. This figure shows that changes in the energy sector are leading not only to prices, but also to efficiency.

Conclusion: the government justified the price increase

Kuchkarov emphasized that the changes in electricity prices were carried out in a balanced and calculated manner. At the same time, social assistance mechanisms are also provided. The government took these measures in order to save energy, form a fair payment system, and effectively distribute resources.