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2022 Annual Letter to Juru’s Employees

#Blog February 03, 2023

Dear Colleagues,

I am posting this letter slightly later this time, as I was out of work for the second half of December and early January. 

2022 has been another eventful year for Juru. We have been contracted for over 25 new assignments in 2022 alone. Overall in 2022, we have worked on more than 50 assignments, predominantly in Uzbekistan, but also in other countries in Central Asia and Caucasus. The Uzbekistan market continues to be quite busy, but other countries in the region are gearing up too. It is an incredibly humbling experience to be trusted by our clients.

In July 2022 during our 7th anniversary, I announced that our mission going forward was Fighting Climate Change. Prior to that, our mission was to address the energy challenges of the region. Although the region's energy challenges remain substantial, I realised we need to look into the bigger picture. Going forward, our efforts will focus not only on sustainable energy and environmental services but also on sustainable and resilient infrastructure (water, waste, buildings, etc.). This is an important development in our strategy and you can expect to hear more on this in the coming months and years.

This year as of Dec 2022, we employ 72 FTE in the Tashkent office (Dec 2021: 60 FTE) and ca.120 people including project-based staff. This makes Juru one of the largest consultancy and engineering firms in Central Asia focused on energy transition and environment. I find the steady growth of our employee base rewarding, as creating high quality employment opportunities for our staff is one of my key personal objectives at Juru.

As you might know, in the beginning of 2022 we have reorganised the firm into three business units (BUs), each with a number of dedicated practices:

• Consulting BU
  • • Energy Systems Advisory
    • Smart Power Systems

• Engineering BU

• Power Generation
• Transmission & Distribution
• Civil Engineering & Surveys

• Sustainability BU

• • • Environmental
    • Social Performance

Below, I am providing a brief performance update for each unit. 

Consulting BU

During 2022, the Advisory practice worked on some really exciting energy and climate change projects in the region for public sector clients, including:

• [WB] Renewable heating and cooling systems in buildings in Uzbekistan
• [WB] Tariff study and Energy Sector Financial Sustainability in the Kyrgyz Republic
• [USAID] Preparation of Renewable Energy Investment Guide in Uzbekistan
• [WB] Central Asia Low Carbon Climate Resilient Cities
• [WB] Long-term Low Carbon Development Options and Pathways in Uzbekistan

Our Smart Power Systems practice is one of the largest of its kind in Central Asia. During 2022, the team worked on a number of high profile studies, including:

• [EBRD] Pre-feasibility and feasibility studies for coupling utility-scale BESS with wind farm including transaction advisory during PPP/IPP tendering
• [USAID] Review draft Grid Code and regulations focussed and develop recommendations on the interconnection of RE + BESS plants
• [Masdar] Power Evacuation Studies for 457 MW Sherabad Solar PV Project

Engineering BU

Our Engineering BU covers a broad range of disciplines in the power generation (PG) and transmission & distribution (T&D) sectors. The Engineering Surveys team works closely with the PG and T&D colleagues to perform various surveys such as geotechnical and topographical surveys. The Surveys team also undertakes interesting measurement campaigns such as albedo or solar irradiation measurements. During 2022, the Engineering team worked on many exciting assignments, including:

• [SEPCO3] Engineering Design for the 500 MW Wind Power Project in Uzbekistan
• [Sojitz] Permit and License Advisory in relation to Sydarya CCGT 2 Project
• [NEGU] Tender support for 500 kV Koltsevaya Digital Substation in Uzbekistan
• [EBRD] Feasibility Study (FS) for the 500 kV Sarimay-Djankeldy Transmission Line
• [NEGU] FS and Tender Support for SCADA and telecommunications infrastructure for National Dispatch Centre of Uzbekistan
• [ACWA] Pre-feasibility study for ca. 290 km 500 kV OHTL in Uzbekistan
• [Envision] Compliance Analysis of the Envision Wind Turbines (EN-171/6.5) with technical regulations of the Republic of Uzbekistan

Sustainability BU

The Sustainability BU is one of the largest and most sophisticated in the region. The team has advanced capabilities to conduct large-scale biodiversity surveys, measurement campaigns and social surveys. Likewise, the team has strong capabilities to collect primary data, model various E&S parameters, prepare well-drafted reports and confidently defend our work in front of funding groups. The BU is active in not only the energy sector, but also in other sectors such as wastewater, road, and industrial. In 2022, the team worked on numerous projects, including:

• [Metito] ESIA and National EIA for Namangan Waste Water Treatment Plant Project in Uzbekistan
• [EDF] ESIA & LRP for 1,600 MW Syrdarya II CCGT Project in Uzbekistan
• [EBRD] Category A ESIA for Sarimay-Dzhankeldy ca.130 km 500 kV Transmission Line in Uzbekistan
• [EBRD] ESIA for 84 km A380 Highway in Khorezm Region in Uzbekistan 
• [ACWA] LRP for Wind Farms in Azerbaijan
• [ACWA] ESIA & LRP for 100 MW Nukus WPP 

I am very much looking forward to 2023. We have a strong project pipeline for 2023, having recently been contracted for a number of high profile projects, such as:

• [NCPE] Engineering & Design Services for 2x500 MW Bash and Dzhankeldy Wind Projects
• [Masdar] PMC services for 3x solar PV projects with total of 897 MW capacity in Uzbekistan
• [ADSSC] Technical Advisory Services for Sewage Treatment Plant in Tashkent, Uzbekistan
• [EBRD] Technical Advisory for Scaling up Private Sector Investment in Utility-Scale Solar PV and/or Onshore Wind Energy in the Kyrgyz Republic

 

In 2023, we continue to invest in our capabilities across the firm, developing new products and services and establishing new teams. The market in Central Asia is evolving fast and consequently, we are evolving as a firm too. We have recently reorganised the firm to better position us for the years ahead. Currently, we have arranged the firm around four different business units headed by our COO Jushkin Ismailov:

• Advisory BU [Head - Khabib Negmatullaev] - focussing on energy, climate, and urban development sectors for public sector clients

• Energy & Infrastructure BU [Head - Jushkin Ismailov] - focussing on broader energy technologies and other infrastructure

• RE Project Development
• Energy & Infrastructure
• Sustainable Buildings
• Engineering Surveys

• Transmission & Distribution [Head - Takhir Urazimbetov]

• Smart Power Systems
• T&D Consultancy
• T&D Engineering

• Sustainability BU [Head - Umida Rozumbetova]

• • • Environmental
    • Biodiversity
    • Social Performance

As some of you might have noticed, my own role has gradually been reduced to strategic development of the firm, whereas day-to-day operations are mostly handled by Jushkin and the head of business units. I also spend my time on new product/service development and innovation projects. I feel this suits my strength very well. 

Sustained growth of the firm is possible only if we build the company around strong values. I set our core values in 2021 Annual Letter to you and here I would just like to list them once again:

• Value #1: Entrepreneurship

• Value #2: Team oriented

• Value #3: Humility

If you are new to Juru, please take time to think about our values. If you have any questions, please feel free to address them to me.

 

Thank you very much for your trust and commitment in 2022 and god bless us all in 2023!

 

Yours faithfully,

Botir