The Nuclear Project in Uzbekistan: An Infrastructure for Digital Growth
The government of Uzbekistan has announced the start of construction of a nuclear power plant in the Jizzakh district, in partnership with Russia and under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The project, which involves the installation of a 500 megawatt power plant, is part of a strategic plan to address the increasing demand for electricity linked to the expansion of data centers and the digital industry. The plant, which uses light water reactor technology, is designed to operate for over 60 years with a high level of safety. The total investment is estimated at 10 billion dollars, financed by Russian loans and local sovereign funds.
The choice of Jizzakh is not random: the area is located in an area with access to existing power grids and transport infrastructure. However, the project faces a growing physical constraint: water availability. Water is needed for cooling the reactor and for treating radioactive waste. According to an estimate presented at MinEx Kazakhstan 2026, the region has an average water availability of 1,200 m³ per capita per year, but the demand for industry and agriculture is growing by 4% annually. This means that the Uzbekistan nuclear project could consume up to 12% of the available water in the region, a critical level for an area already experiencing water stress.
The Operational Mechanism of Nuclear Power and the Water Requirement
The nuclear reactor under construction in Jizzakh operates using a closed-loop water cooling system. Each day, the system requires approximately 150,000 tons of water to maintain the core temperature below the safety limit. The water is drawn from deep wells and treated to remove impurities before being returned to the system. However, even with recycling, the system loses about 5% of the water in the form of steam, which must be replaced. This translates to a net water requirement of 7,500 tons per day.
The water supply network consists of three main wells and a transportation system covering 45 kilometers of stainless steel pipelines. Maintenance of these pipelines requires technical intervention every 18 months, with an average downtime of 14 days. In the event of a failure, replacing a single pipe takes 72 hours due to the need for radiographic inspections and safety certifications. The dependence on a fragile water supply network and a physically limited transportation system makes the project vulnerable to disruptions caused by drought or technical failures. The system’s response capability is therefore limited to 10 days of autonomy in the event of a water supply interruption.
Who Pays and Who Benefits in the New Development Model
Companies operating in the technology and digital industry sectors are directly benefiting from the expansion of the electricity system. Companies such as Kay Copper and Teck Resources, which are developing mining projects in Arizona, have increased their profit margins thanks to access to a stable and low-cost energy supply. In particular, the graphite project in Baie-Comeau, which involves the production of 51,000 tons of graphite for electric batteries per year, has seen a 30% increase in revenue compared to 2025, thanks to the expansion of demand from data centers in Asia.
Conversely, countries that depend on the import of energy and minerals are paying an increasing cost. Pakistan, for example, has seen its oil import bill rise by 167% compared to the period before the conflict in Iran, reaching 800 million dollars per week. This impact directly affects the trade balance and public spending policies. Furthermore, agricultural businesses in Uzbekistan are facing an increase in energy costs for irrigation, with a 22% increase in electricity prices for agricultural use since 2025. The additional cost for irrigation is estimated at 120 million dollars per year, an amount that could only be reduced with the adoption of water recycling systems.
Closure: Monitoring Voltage Nodes
The Uzbekistan nuclear project represents a turning point in the regional development model, but its sustainability depends on physical factors that go beyond technical planning. The water constraint is not a future problem, but a present operational factor. To monitor the situation in the coming months, two indicators are crucial: the groundwater level in the Jizzakh district, which must remain above 30 meters deep, and the water recycling capacity usage rate in the nuclear cooling systems, which must not fall below 92%. If both parameters exceed the critical limits, the project may need to be scaled down or suspended. The real challenge is not the technology, but the management of the overall system. Growth is no longer just a matter of investment, but of balance between physical resources and increasing demand.
Photo by Aleksander Stypczynski on Unsplash
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