The Export-Import Bank of Korea (Kexim) will provide US$1bn in financing for the Surgil gas project in Uzbekistan, which sees Korean firms taking a lead role. A total of eight Korean corporations are participating in the project.
Kexim’s backing of the project marks the first and largest project finance support in Uzbekistan. The US$4bn mega-project will develop a gas field in Surgil, near the Aral Sea, and produce natural gas and gas-related chemical products.
A representative of Kexim states: “Using our technology and financing resources to develop Uzbekistan’s abundant resources will not only serve as a model for Korean-led resource development, but also exemplify diplomacy in resource cooperation.”
The project sees state-owned Uzbekneftegaz (UNZ) investing 50% and a Korean consortium of Korea Gas Corporation, Honam Petrochemical Corporation, and STX Energy investing the remaining 50% to establish a special project company, Uz-Kor Gas Chemical.
Kexim chairman Yong Hwan Kim notes: "This project reconfirms the competitiveness and technologies of Korean oil and gas industries. I hope this project will serve as a bridgehead for the further advancement of Korean firms into Central Asia."
Last Updated April 20, 2012
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