Uzbekneftegaz to stop AI-80 gasoline production starting September 2025

Uzbekneftegaz will discontinue the production of AI-80 gasoline beginning in September 2025.

By the end of 2025, Uzbekneftegaz aims to ramp up the production of high-octane automotive gasoline (AI-92), with the complete phaseout of AI-80 scheduled for September.

Reportedly, the Bukhara Oil Refinery plans to produce a total of 1.03 million tons of fuel in 2025: 487,000 tons of AI-80 and 543,000 tons of AI-92+. AI-80 production will be limited to the first eight months, after which only AI-92+ will be produced, at an average monthly output of 90,000 tones.

As a result, Uzbekneftegaz’s AI-80 reserves are expected to be fully depleted by the end of this year. From 2026 onward, the company will sell only high-octane gasoline (AI-92 and AI-95).

Phasing out AI-80 fuel

In February 2024, Uzbekneftegaz and China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) reached an agreement to modernize the Bukhara Oil Refinery and halt the production of AI-80 gasoline. The modernization project is expected to take more than two years and will be funded through Chinese investment.

In April, Uzbekneftegaz also signed a separate agreement with the French company Axens to modernize the refinery. Under a fast-track approach that combines simultaneous design and construction, the project will aim to produce AI-92 and AI-95 fuel in a 60–40 ratio. The target is to reach an annual production of 1 million tons of Euro-5 compliant gasoline.

In May, former deputy chairman for refining at Uzbekneftegaz, Odil Temirov, told Spot that Axens had already begun work under the licensing agreement for its technology.

“They (Axens) are expected to complete the basic design by September. At the same time, we’re working with a CNPC division on preparatory tasks. The AI-80 phaseout is proceeding separately and is not tied to the major modernization of the refinery. We’ll begin producing AI-91 and AI-92 by November–December. The full transition away from AI-80 will start in early 2025,” he said.

Temirov noted that 85% of the Bukhara refinery’s output currently consists of AI-80 gasoline, with the remaining 15% being AI-92. This ratio is expected to shift toward high-octane fuel starting in November 2024.

Last October, Uzbekneftegaz began listing AI-92 gasoline on the commodity exchange and announced a strategy to gradually reduce prices for high-octane fuel.

In February, the president of Uzbekistan ordered a nationwide push to limit the use and sale of AI-80 gasoline by the end of 2025 and ensure the population has access to high-quality, eco-friendly, and affordable fuel.