For investors

The procedure is set out in the Regulation on the Procedure for Implementing PPP Projects (Annex 1 to Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers No. 720, cl. 3, 5, 10, 11):

• First, the project is checked for suitability for PPP. It must address economic, social or infrastructure needs, attract private investment and/or advanced management, and have performance indicators and an allocation of risks.
• The project is carried out by government bodies, state organisations or entities with a state share of at least 50%.
• The concept is then discussed publicly for 10 days on the public partner’s official website.
• For projects worth USD 10 million or more, international and/or local consultants must be engaged.
• If budget funds are required, the Ministry of Economy and Finance issues an opinion.

Tender documentation and the draft agreement for projects worth over USD 1 million are agreed by the authorised body. A two-stage tender requires at least two bidders that have passed pre-qualification; each bidder may submit one bid. Local and foreign legal entities, individual entrepreneurs and their associations may take part, provided they have the necessary resources and are not undergoing reorganisation, liquidation or insolvency.

1. The initiator submits the concept to the prospective public partner. After pre-qualification, the partner decides within 30 calendar days whether to approve the concept or to refuse its implementation.
2. The partner sends an approved concept worth over USD 1 million to the authorised body for agreement; approval follows the same levels as for public projects.
3. Within 5 calendar days after approval, the concept is published with an invitation to other interested parties to express their interest.
4. If no one expresses interest within 45 days, direct negotiations begin; the agreement is signed without a tender within 60 days after the authorised body has agreed the draft agreement.
5. If other parties have expressed interest, a single-stage tender is held regardless of the project value (bids must be submitted within at least 45 days). If the initiator does not win, the project preparation costs are reimbursed, up to 1% of the project value, by the tender winner or the runner-up (reserve winner).

Approval of a concept does not guarantee that an agreement will be concluded.

An agreement without a tender is permitted only where the law expressly allows it (Articles 17 and 25 of the Law “On Public-Private Partnership”):

• ensuring national defence and state security;
• exclusive rights to the results of intellectual activity, as well as exclusive rights to land, real estate or other property without which the project is not feasible;
• cases defined by decrees and resolutions of the President;
• a private initiative, if no one else has expressed interest within 45 days after the concept is published.

The term of the agreement is at least 3 and at most 49 years; the parties may extend or shorten it within these limits in the cases provided for by the agreement (Article 28). The agreement determines:

• the parties, subject matter, obligations and liability;
• the allocation of risks between the public and the private partner (a mandatory term); the risks assumed by the parties are specified in advance in the tender documentation (Articles 22, 27);
• the technical and economic parameters of the facility, work schedules and the procedure for providing land;
• the terms for setting and changing prices and tariffs;
• payments, performance security and insurance;
• the procedure for amending and terminating the agreement, including the amount and procedure for payment upon early termination;
• the procedure for monitoring and dispute resolution.

Currency. The PPP Law contains no separate currency guarantees. The currency of the project parameters and the exchange rate used to compare bids are specified in the tender documentation (Article 22); the terms of payments and of setting and changing tariffs are determined by the agreement (Article 27).

Disputes. The dispute resolution procedure is a mandatory term of the agreement (Article 27); disputes are resolved in accordance with the procedure established by legislation (Article 40). Uzbekistan is a party to the 1958 New York Convention (on the recognition and enforcement of foreign arbitral awards) and the 1965 ICSID Convention (on the settlement of investment disputes between States and nationals of other States); the terms of arbitration, including international arbitration, are agreed in the agreement for each project. If an international treaty of Uzbekistan establishes rules different from those of the Law, the treaty applies (Article 2).

Yes. Foreign legal entities participate on equal terms with local ones: they may submit a private initiative, take part in a tender, and join a consortium or a special project company. Restrictions under sector-specific legislation apply to certain sectors (for example, defence and security).

Yes. The project concept is submitted to the prospective public partner, which decides within 30 calendar days after the initiator’s pre-qualification. If no one expresses interest within 45 days after the concept is published, the agreement is concluded without a tender; if others do, a tender is held.

Through a tender: single-stage for projects up to and including USD 1 million, and two-stage above that. Direct negotiations are permitted only where the law expressly allows it (see above).

From the private partner’s own funds and loans from banks and international financial institutions; in certain cases, with state support. The terms depend on the project.

The Law provides for subsidies, contributions of assets, payments for the use of goods and services, budget loans and credit lines, and state guarantees. None of these measures is granted automatically: the type and amount are determined by the project and the agreement. Tax benefits are a separate category: their terms are determined by the Tax Code and other acts, and the PPP agreement itself does not grant benefits.

The overall duration depends on the project. The Law sets time limits for individual stages (see above) and the term of the agreement, which is 3 to 49 years.

In the PPP registry and the announcements section, as well as on the websites of public partners.

In the public PPP registry: the Law provides for disclosure of the parties, type of activity, location, term, tariffs, total cost and state support of the project, except for information constituting a state secret.