The Deputy Minister of Energy, Umid Mamadaminov, met with the leadership of companies managing electric vehicle charging stations in Tashkent. This was reported by the press service of the Ministry of Energy.
Present at the meeting were the heads of EBB Charging, GreenTE, Megawatt Energy, Mustang Energy, Q.Watt, Spectre Energy, TezTok, Tok Bor, and Voltauto. Representatives from the General Prosecutor's Office, the Uzenergoinspection, the city administration, and the "Regional Electric Networks" also participated.
The main topic of discussion was the reports concerning the disconnection of electric charging stations in Tashkent from the grid. The leaders of the operating companies, along with relevant officials, provided comments regarding the issues in this sector.
From the Ministry of Energy, statements were reiterated that the agency had not issued any orders to disconnect the charging stations and supports their expansion. Meanwhile, officials urged entrepreneurs to comply with legal requirements.
As a result of the meeting, the proposal to hold regular negotiations between businesses and officials was endorsed. After exchanging views and considering them, the parties reached several agreements, although the details remain undisclosed.
Disconnections of Electric Charging Stations
In mid-December, Spot, citing several market participants, reported on the forced disconnection of electric vehicle charging stations in Uzbekistan. One company stated that approximately 20 stations, mainly located in Tashkent, were disconnected. Another company noted that there were "quite a few" charging stations disconnected from the power grid.
Market participants shared that they were not warned about the disconnections and were not provided with legal documents. They learned about the disconnections post-factum during monitoring of the stations' operations.
Entrepreneurs expressed frustration that, regardless of the operations of the electric charging stations, they still have obligations to pay rent and other fees. Additionally, the disconnections led to customer dissatisfaction, which harms the companies' reputations.
Furthermore, on December 14, one company received letters from district cadastral offices in Tashkent demanding the dismantling of charging stations installed in the parking lots of cafes, restaurants, business centers, and adjacent territories within 15 days.
The press secretary of the Ministry of Energy, Hasan Toshkhodjaev, told Spot that no restrictions on the operation of electric charging stations had been imposed by the agency. He emphasized that the ministry supports the promotion of electric vehicles in Uzbekistan.
A deputy of the Legislative Chamber of the Oliy Majlis, Nuriddin Sultonov, sent a deputy inquiry regarding the disconnected electric charging stations to the Ministry of Energy and the Cadastral Agency.
On January 2, Umid Mamadaminov acknowledged that in mid-December 2024, "relevant authorities" conducted a raid and disconnected "a number of charging stations on the same day." After the agency's intervention, the charging stations were reconnected to the power grid.
However, representatives from several companies stated that not all stations were reconnected to the grid. They expressed their intention to independently resume the operations of the stations.
Earlier, Spot reported that in Norway, the share of electric cars in the automotive market reached nearly 90%.