Lower Amudarya economic region and Khorezm region

The Lower Amudarya economic region lies in the north-west of the country and consists of the Republic of Karakalpakstan and Khorezm region; by area it is the largest of Uzbekistan’s economic regions. In the Amu Darya oases people have long lived densely and farmed, the Khorezm oasis being especially famous. Population is uneven and decreases towards the Aral Sea. Agriculture is the base of the economy, but almost ninety percent of the land used is pasture; saline land, sands, lakes and marshes also cover large areas. Besides cotton, silk farming, karakul sheep, fruit, grapes, melons and rice growing are developed; the region produces a large part of the country’s rice. Karakul sheep graze all year on desert pastures, and horses graze in the riverside woods. Water resources depend on the Amu Darya; because the Aral Sea shrank sharply, the area has faced ecological and social problems. In industry food and light branches (especially cotton ginning) have a large place. Energy comes from the Takhiatash thermal power station and the Tuyamuyun hydro complex, and the region is joined to the national power system. New enterprises include the Kungrad soda plant, the Khojeli glass plant, the Ustyurt gas-chemical complex, the Navoi–Uchkuduk–Nukus railway (its new Uchkuduk–Nukus section is about 340 km) and the Nukus–Khojeli bridge. In transport, railways and roads have grown in importance while river transport has lost its importance.