Quite a symbol. Thursday, November 2, at the time of French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to Uzbekistan, the Orano mining group announced that it had extracted its first 350 kilograms of uranium from Uzbek soil. The announcement confirmed the extent to which the Head of State’s tour in Central Asia, Wednesday 1er November, in Kazakhstan, the next day in Uzbekistan, was intended to strengthen the French economic presence in the former Russian territory, now courted by Turkey, the European Union and China.
Taking advantage of the visit of the French Head of State, Orano but also EDF, TotalEnergies, Eiffage signed contracts on the occasion of the Business Forum organized in Samarkand (East), the former legendary stage of the Silk Road in the time of Marco Polo. The event was sponsored by the French and Uzbek presidents, Chavkat Mirzioïev, whose good understanding, smiles and little pats on the back, was visible.
“Uzbekistan is transforming, we must be there”, insisted Mr. Macron during the opening of the forum. France supports the policy “of regional appeasement and stability”, “opening and modernization” of Uzbekistan, insisted the French president, who took with him on his tour of Central Asia no less than twenty French business leaders, as well as the delegate ministers Roland Lescure (industry) and Olivier Becht (foreign trade) .
Several contracts signed
Anxious to emerge from the economic isolation it has suffered for two decades, Uzbekistan is seeking to open up to foreign investors. Already present in Kazakhstan, where it operates the largest uranium mine in the world, the Orano company was continuing prospecting activities on the Uzbek side. The contract signed in Samarkand officially launches the extraction phase for the Djengeldi uranium mine, in the north of the country. This is a ” pilot project “ concerned about environmental standards, according to the French presidency. France seeks above all to secure its uranium supplies, in Kazakhstan as in Uzbekistan, especially since Niger is no longer a reliable supplier.
The visit was also marked by the signing of contracts in the field of renewable energies. EDF has signed a compromise for the realization of two hydroelectric projects. TotalEnergies, for its part, has concluded a memorandum of understanding for the extension of the Tutly photovoltaic plant, intended to provide better access to electricity to hundreds of thousands of Uzbek households.
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