The contract is supported by the EU’s Global Gateway programme and an EU cooperation agreement with Uzbekistan approved by the European Parliament (EP). The loan and collateral will be provided by the European Investment Bank (EIB).

This is the first such large European project in Uzbekistan, Zdechovsky said, adding that the contract took 2.5 years to prepare. Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis was present at the signing of the strategic cooperation agreement in Tashkent at the end of April.

“This entry of Skoda is crucial for all EU countries. And it is also about other producers – Siemens, Alstom and so on. In the future, we want Europe to be a leader again in what it is best at, and that is trains,” Zdechovsky said. Uzbekistan, with a population of 39 million, was chosen by Brussels as number one in the Central Asian region because it is experiencing the most progress, he said.

“We want to develop a rail vehicle and urban transport platform in Central Asia, which is about 100 million people, in partnership with local companies. The key is to make Uzbekistan the hub of the Skoda Group for the development of trains, which are in huge demand there,” Zdechovsky added. According to him, there is also interest in Skoda products in Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.

The first train should be in Tashkent in early 2028.

 

Zdroj ČTK