High-Speed Train Between Tashkent and Nukus to Launch in March 2027
Uzbekistan
A high-speed train service between Tashkent and Nukus is scheduled to begin in March 2027. The journey by rail will be reduced from 16 hours to seven hours. The project is part of a broader development plan for Karakalpakstan.
The plans were discussed at a September 19 meeting chaired by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, which also focused on establishing a major regional green energy hub. Foreign investment in Karakalpakstan reached $1.7 billion in 2025, 22 times higher than four years earlier. In the first half of 2026, the region’s gross regional product grew by 10.2%.
In recent years, 860 MW of new generation capacity has been commissioned in Karakalpakstan. The share of green energy has reached 23%, while electricity generation quadrupled last year to 5.33 billion kWh. This is nearly three times the annual needs of the local population and industry.
By 2030, the region plans to increase wind power capacity to 3.3 GW, raise the share of green energy to 76% and create 400 MW of energy storage capacity. New projects include a 1.5 GW wind farm by Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power, worth $2.6 billion, as well as 1,500 km of high-voltage transmission lines and three substations.
Transport infrastructure is also being upgraded. With support from the Asian Development Bank, a 240-km section of the A-380 highway in Kungrad district has received concrete pavement under a $384 million project. Another 92-km section in Turtkul, Ellikqala and Beruniy districts is being modernized through a $233 million ADB-supported project. The project is expected to increase transit capacity 1.5 times.
Social infrastructure is expanding as well. Nukus has opened an oncology centre, a gymnastics centre and a branch of the conservatory, while Kungrad has received a children’s hospital and maternity hospital. A sanatorium has opened in Bozatau district, and new amphitheatres have been built in Amudarya and Turtkul districts.
Authorities have also ordered the reconstruction of water treatment facilities in Tuyamuyun and the construction of a 100-km water pipeline between Kungrad and Muynak. Together, the transport, energy and social projects are intended to support Karakalpakstan’s further development.
In recent years, 860 MW of new generation capacity has been commissioned in Karakalpakstan. The share of green energy has reached 23%, while electricity generation quadrupled last year to 5.33 billion kWh. This is nearly three times the annual needs of the local population and industry.
By 2030, the region plans to increase wind power capacity to 3.3 GW, raise the share of green energy to 76% and create 400 MW of energy storage capacity. New projects include a 1.5 GW wind farm by Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power, worth $2.6 billion, as well as 1,500 km of high-voltage transmission lines and three substations.
Transport infrastructure is also being upgraded. With support from the Asian Development Bank, a 240-km section of the A-380 highway in Kungrad district has received concrete pavement under a $384 million project. Another 92-km section in Turtkul, Ellikqala and Beruniy districts is being modernized through a $233 million ADB-supported project. The project is expected to increase transit capacity 1.5 times.
Social infrastructure is expanding as well. Nukus has opened an oncology centre, a gymnastics centre and a branch of the conservatory, while Kungrad has received a children’s hospital and maternity hospital. A sanatorium has opened in Bozatau district, and new amphitheatres have been built in Amudarya and Turtkul districts.
Authorities have also ordered the reconstruction of water treatment facilities in Tuyamuyun and the construction of a 100-km water pipeline between Kungrad and Muynak. Together, the transport, energy and social projects are intended to support Karakalpakstan’s further development.
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