Chinese Investment - The Times Of Central Asia

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Taxi Competition

Yandex Go Outage Boosts Rival Taxi Services in Uzbekistan

The ripple effects of this month's Yandex Go outage are still being felt across Uzbekistan's taxi market. Rival ride-hailing services have reported a surge in bookings, while a senior government official has raised the prospect of further competition, revealing that a Chinese company plans to launch its own taxi app with a fleet of 5,000 vehicles. Uzbekistan's First Deputy Minister of Transport Mamanbiy Omarov disclosed the unnamed investor's plans in an October 16 interview with Spot, although further details were scant. On October 11, Yandex Go users in Uzbekistan experienced disruptions when trying to book rides. The app also operated intermittently in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. The outages coincided with a series of drone strikes targeting Yandex data centers in Russia. Between October 8 and 11, attacks affected company facilities in the Ryazan and Kaluga regions, followed by a strike in Vladimir. Server disruptions also hit delivery and other digital services used by people across Central Asia. Yandex Go accounted for approximately 85% of receipts issued through taxi aggregators in Uzbekistan in 2024, according to figures from the country's Tax Committee. Between October 11 and 13, orders through Uklon rose to two to three times normal levels, while MyTaxi, which operates only in Tashkent, reported 15 times its usual volume, according to Spot. MyTaxi said its own servers are located in Uzbekistan and outlined plans to retain the new passengers attracted during the disruption. It remains unknown where the Chinese operator's servers will be located or which companies will provide its technical infrastructure. These details would help establish how dependent the service might be on infrastructure outside Uzbekistan. Chinese automakers already operate in Uzbekistan, while companies from China are involved in developing the country's transport infrastructure. The proposed fleet could give the new operator a significant presence, particularly if it concentrates on Tashkent. However, Chinese companies have not always succeeded in challenging Yandex's position in Central Asia. Ride-hailing giant DiDi entered neighboring Kazakhstan in 2021 but withdrew in March 2022, less than a year after launching. The company cited changing market conditions and other challenges, although it did not explain its decision in detail.

Mining Investment

Indian Gold Mining Project in Kyrgyzstan Reaches Production Stage

An Indian-backed gold project has moved into the production stage at the high-altitude Solton-Sary deposit in Kyrgyzstan, nearly five years after its developer signed an agreement with the state-owned Kyrgyzaltyn company. Deccan Gold Mines says it is the first Indian investment in Kyrgyzstan’s gold mining sector to reach this stage. On September 12, a gold processing plant began test operations at the Altyn-Tor section of the Solton-Sary deposit in the Naryn Region. The project is being developed by Avelum Partner, in which India’s Deccan Gold Mines holds a controlling stake, together with Kyrgyzaltyn. The two sides have been working together since December 2021. Under their partnership agreement, Kyrgyzaltyn holds a 35% stake, while Avelum Partner holds 65%. The project involves the comprehensive development of Altyn-Tor, including the processing of accumulated tailings and waste rock. Solton-Sary is located about 355 kilometers from Bishkek at an altitude of 3,500–3,600 meters. Soviet geologists first studied the deposit, and trial production at Altyn-Tor began in 1994. Operations have since been intermittent. Investment in the project reached $34.2 million by the end of August 2026. The foundation stone for the new plant was laid in July 2024. At the time, Kyrgyzaltyn said that once the facility reached its planned operating capacity, it was expected to create at least 400 jobs, more than 95% of them for Kyrgyz citizens. The agreement also stipulates that commercial-grade gold produced at the facility must be transferred to Kyrgyzaltyn and cannot be exported independently by the Indian partner. The structure is significant in a mining sector where foreign ownership has repeatedly become politically contentious. The most prominent example is Kumtor, Kyrgyzstan’s largest gold mine, which the government took under state control from Canada’s Centerra Gold in 2021. A settlement the following year transferred ownership to Kyrgyzaltyn. At Altyn-Tor, by contrast, Kyrgyzaltyn remains a partner in the project while the foreign investor provides most of the investment. Chinese investment is also present at Solton-Sary itself, although its history there has been considerably more complicated. The deposit consists of three main gold-bearing sections – Altyn-Tor, Buchuk, and Ak-Tash. Total gold reserves have been estimated at about 20 metric tons. Buchuk is being developed by the Kyrgyz-Chinese company Zhong Ji Mining. Explored gold reserves at the site are estimated at 12 metric tons, while geologists have indicated a possible additional 22 metric tons of gold resources. The project became the center of a major dispute over foreign mining investment in 2019. In August of that year, hundreds of residents of the Naryn Region gathered near Zhong Ji Mining’s operations. Local residents linked mining activity to livestock deaths and feared environmental contamination. On August 5, the protest escalated into clashes with Chinese workers, and more than 20 people received medical treatment. The authorities suspended operations, while the company removed some of its workers and equipment. When President Sadyr Japarov visited Solton-Sary in 2022, the Chinese project was still not operating. Local residents again raised concerns about the environment and the condition of roads. Japarov said...

Chinese Loan Agreement

Kyrgyzstan’s Eldik Bank Secures CNY 1 Billion Loan from China Development Bank

Kyrgyzstan’s state-owned Eldik Bank has signed a loan agreement worth 1 billion Chinese yuan (CNY), or about $147 million, with China Development Bank to finance priority projects and deepen economic cooperation between Bishkek and Beijing. The agreement was signed on July 2 by Eldik Bank Chairman Ulanbek Nogaev and China Development Bank President Tan Jiong. According to Eldik Bank, the funds will be used to finance small and medium-sized enterprises in infrastructure, green energy, industry, agriculture, and other priority sectors. The bank said the facility would give entrepreneurs in Kyrgyzstan access to long-term capital to modernize production and carry out investment projects that create jobs. The two sides also plan to sign an additional agreement allocating CNY 700 million to Eldik Bank’s subsidiaries, Eldik Leasing and Sky Mobile, which will oversee projects under the financing framework. Eldik Bank said the agreement reflected trust between the two financial institutions and a shared interest in expanding financial and investment ties. “Our partnership with China Development Bank has been developing successfully for more than 20 years and has made a significant contribution to supporting Kyrgyzstan’s economy,” Nogaev said. “This new agreement creates additional opportunities for financing priority projects and will further strengthen the economic ties between Kyrgyzstan and China.” The signing took place during the 22nd meeting of the council of the Interbank Consortium of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in Cholpon-Ata, Kyrgyzstan, where Eldik Bank currently holds the rotating chairmanship. Delegations from member banks in Belarus, China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan attended the meeting. Participants discussed expanding interbank cooperation, joint investment projects, and sustainable finance initiatives within the SCO framework. China remains one of Kyrgyzstan’s largest external creditors. In late June, Kyrgyzstan’s parliament approved a separate preferential loan agreement with the Export-Import Bank of China to finance part of the country’s share in the construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway, one of Central Asia’s largest transport infrastructure projects. As of January 31, 2026, Kyrgyzstan’s debt to China’s Export-Import Bank stood at approximately $1.5 billion.

Tajik-Afghan Border

Chinese Workers Return to Tajik Highway Under Guard After Afghan Border Attacks

Chinese engineers and workers have returned to a highway site in eastern Tajikistan under armed protection. Their return restarts work on a road toward China that stopped after two attacks from Afghanistan killed five Chinese nationals in November. Tajikistan's Transport Ministry said Chinese specialists came back in April to the Kalai-Khumb to Vanj section of the Dushanbe-Kulma highway in Gorno-Badakhshan. They are advising local crews, pouring concrete, fitting tunnel lighting and completing other works. Ozodi said its correspondent saw Tajik special forces guarding Chinese workers in Darvaz in late May, but security officers did not allow photos or video. The return keeps the China-funded Dushanbe-Kulma corridor moving. The road links Dushanbe with the Kulma Pass on the Chinese frontier through the Pamir. The Kalai-Khumb-Vanj works sit close to the Pyanj River, where attacks from the Afghan side are impacting the cost of Chinese projects. Construction on the Kalai-Khumb-Vanj section began on Sept. 20, 2022, with the contract running until September 20, 2026. The contractor is China Road and Bridge Corporation. China is funding the work with a $230 million grant. Once complete, the road section should shrink from 109 kilometers to 92.3 kilometers. It includes two tunnels, five anti-avalanche corridors and 14 bridges. The route crosses Darvaz, one of Tajikistan's hardest mountain road sections. The Transport Ministry has described it as a route that had gone for years without major repairs. The work is meant to allow year-round movement and lower fuel and travel costs. By January, crews had finished 12 of the 14 bridges. Two bridges, avalanche corridors and tunnel systems remained under construction. Work stopped after the November 30 attack in Shodak, a village in Darvaz district. Tajikistan's Border Troops said an armed group came from Ruzvayak in Afghanistan's Badakhshan province and attacked CRBC employees. Two Chinese citizens were killed and two were wounded. Dushanbe called the attackers members of an armed terrorist group, but did not publicly name the organization. Four days earlier, another attack hit Shamsiddin Shohin district in Khatlon, also from Afghan territory. The Chinese embassy said three Chinese citizens were killed and one Chinese citizen was wounded. TCA previously reported that Tajikistan described the strike as using an unmanned aerial vehicle carrying explosives. China reacted with a rare public warning. On December 1, the Chinese embassy urged Chinese companies and personnel to evacuate the Tajik-Afghan border area. Its latest June 9 public warning still told Chinese citizens not to work or travel in Tajikistan's southern border areas, citing a complex security situation and extreme weather. Afghanistan's Taliban government promised cooperation after the killings. Reuters quoted Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi as saying, "The Islamic Emirate is fully prepared to strengthen border security, conduct joint investigations, and engage in any form of coordination… joint measures against malicious elements are a pressing necessity." Taliban officials later said suspects had been detained in Afghanistan's Badakhshan province. The Tajik authorities say the border is stable and under control, while continuing to announce smuggling cases and armed incidents....

Chinese Investment

Chinese Investment in Uzbekistan Surpasses $8 Billion This Year

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev met with a delegation of leading Chinese companies and financial institutions on the sidelines of the Tashkent International Investment Forum. The meeting focused on new investment projects in energy, mining, infrastructure, and finance. The Chinese delegation was led by Wang Hongzhi, head of China’s National Energy Administration. It included executives from China Energy Engineering Corporation, China Datang, Sinoma Energy Conservation, China Southern Power Grid, China CAMC Engineering, China National Nuclear Corporation, and State Nuclear Uranium Resource Development. Representatives of the Export-Import Bank of China and Bank of China also attended. According to Uzbekistan’s presidential press service, the talks focused on high-tech projects in the energy and geological sectors, as well as cooperation in banking and finance. Mirziyoyev welcomed the rapid growth of Uzbekistan-China economic ties. Since the beginning of the year, bilateral trade has exceeded $6 billion, while direct Chinese investment in Uzbekistan has surpassed $8 billion. Nearly 6,000 joint ventures involving Chinese partners are operating in the country. Renewable energy projects formed a major part of the discussion. Chinese companies are already involved in building solar and wind power plants, as well as energy storage systems, across Uzbekistan. Participants supported plans to accelerate ongoing projects and launch new initiatives. These include expanding photovoltaic power generation capacity, introducing agrivoltaic technologies that combine agriculture and solar energy production, and building new transmission lines. The meeting also covered cooperation in waste-to-energy generation and advanced technological solutions, including modern data centers. In mining and geology, officials discussed joint exploration and development of mineral deposits. They also reviewed long-term partnerships in the supply of critical raw materials. Financial cooperation was another key topic. Participants reviewed opportunities for Chinese banks to support infrastructure projects, irrigation modernization, high-speed road construction, hydropower development, agricultural machinery supplies, and financing for small and medium-sized businesses. Earlier this year, the third Uzbekistan-China Interregional Forum in Xi’an resulted in more than $3.5 billion in investment and export agreements, including $3.35 billion in investment projects and $156 million in export contracts. Officials said the agreements would support infrastructure modernization, transport development, environmental services, and industrial production. Speakers at the Xi’an forum said bilateral trade reached nearly $18 billion last year, while accumulated Chinese investment in Uzbekistan totaled $17 billion.

Electric Vehicles

Kyrgyzstan to Establish National Taxi Aggregator With Chinese Support

A Chinese company will help Kyrgyzstan establish its own electric vehicle taxi aggregator in a market currently dominated by Russian ride-hailing platforms. The National Investment Fund of the Kyrgyz Republic and China’s Shenzhen Wuyou Technology Co., Ltd. have signed framework agreements on investment projects to establish a national taxi aggregator, a modern electric vehicle fleet, and a network of EV charging stations across Kyrgyzstan, according to the Ministry of Economy and Commerce. At the signing ceremony, Deputy Minister of Economy and Commerce Benazir Nurlanova said Kyrgyzstan attaches particular importance to developing its partnership with China. She said the new projects would contribute to the development of a green economy in Kyrgyzstan, the adoption of modern technologies, and investment cooperation between the two countries. The Chinese side expressed readiness for long-term cooperation, including the exchange of experience and technology, and noted the high potential of joint initiatives in electric transport and digital infrastructure. Kyrgyzstan’s taxi market is currently served through taxi aggregators: ride-hailing platforms that connect passengers with private drivers through a single digital system. The state-backed project involving the Chinese company could become an alternative to existing aggregators, including Russia’s Yandex Taxi, which currently dominates Kyrgyzstan’s taxi market, and Wildberries Taxi, which has entered the local market.