This publication comprises two companion documents: a White Paper outlining the strategic vision and financial case, and a detailed Technical Plan providing the scientific basis and engineering design. Together they address a critical challenge in Uzbekistan's Kyzylkum Desert: the severe and worsening desertification of the 1,000 km² perimeter surrounding Aydar Lake — a vast anthropogenic lake formed in 1969 that now loses 5–7 billion cubic meters of water annually to non-beneficial evaporation.
Rather than simply defending against desertification, the proposal reframes the problem as an economic opportunity. Through an innovative Water-Energy-Food Nexus approach — the "Nine-Square Grid" Circular Model — the project transforms degraded desert land into a productive eco-economic zone generating 1.8 GW of clean energy, high-value nut orchards, and industrialized livestock farming. The project was submitted to the Government of Uzbekistan, the Asian Development Bank, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and Masdar (Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company).
The project's core innovation is a three-pillar integrated system: an Energy Shield (floating solar on the lake + onshore wind farms), a Biological Barrier (120-metre mixed windbreak belts of poplar and almond trees), and Circular Agriculture (nine-square-grid livestock units surrounded by maize and alfalfa). Livestock manure is composted and applied over a 10-year cycle to convert sandy soil into fertile arable land.
A 500 MW floating photovoltaic installation on the lake surface physically reduces water evaporation — one of the project's most innovative features. Combined with 1,300 MW of onshore wind, the project delivers 1.8 GW of total clean energy capacity, directly supporting Uzbekistan's national renewable energy targets.
Aydar Lake currently loses 5–7 billion cubic meters per year to open-water evaporation — water diverted from the Syr Darya River that provides no agricultural or ecological benefit. The floating solar canopy and windbreak belts materially reduce this loss, generating significant macroeconomic value across the broader Aral Sea basin.
Total initial investment is approximately USD 2.65 billion. Combined energy and agricultural revenues stabilize at approximately USD 350 million annually from Year 2 onward, with cumulative cash flow turning positive by Year 9. The project also generates multi-million-ton carbon sequestration assets and broad macroeconomic co-benefits.
The project is explicitly designed as a demonstration case for arid-region sustainability — financially self-sustaining, ecologically restorative, and replicable in comparable desert-lake perimeter environments across Central Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa.
本出版物由两份配套文件组成：一份阐述战略愿景与财务逻辑的白皮书，以及一份提供科学依据与工程设计的详细技术方案。两份文件共同聚焦于乌兹别克斯坦克孜勒库姆沙漠的一项关键挑战：阿依达尔湖周边1000平方公里地区日益严峻的沙漠化问题——这座形成于1969年的人工湖，每年因无效蒸发损失高达50至70亿立方米水资源。
本方案不是简单地防御沙漠化，而是将问题重新定义为经济机遇。通过创新性的水-能-食物协同发展方法——"九宫格"循环模式——将退化的沙漠土地转化为可产出1.8GW清洁能源、高价值坚果林及规模化畜牧业的生态经济区。本方案已提交乌兹别克斯坦政府、亚洲开发银行、亚洲基础设施投资银行及马斯达尔（阿布扎比未来能源公司）。
项目核心创新为三支柱一体化系统：能源屏障（湖面浮式光伏+陆上风电）、生物防护带（120米宽杨树与杏仁树混交防风林）及循环农业（九宫格畜牧单元外环玉米与苜蓿种植带）。牲畜粪便经堆肥后在10年周期内施用，将沙质土壤逐步转化为肥沃耕地。
在湖面安装500MW浮式光伏，通过物理覆盖显著降低水面蒸发——这是本项目最具创新性的特色之一。结合1300MW陆上风电，项目总清洁能源装机达1.8GW，直接支撑乌兹别克斯坦国家可再生能源目标。
阿依达尔湖目前每年因开放水面蒸发损失50至70亿立方米水资源——这些水源自锡尔河引水，既无农业价值，亦无生态效益。浮式光伏遮盖与防风林体系将实质性减少这一损失，为整个咸海流域创造重大宏观经济价值。
初始总投资约26.5亿美元。能源与农业综合收入从第2年起稳定在约3.5亿美元/年，累计现金流于第9年转正。项目还将产生数百万吨级碳汇资产及广泛的宏观经济协同效益。
本项目明确定位为干旱地区可持续发展示范案例——财务自给、生态修复、可复制，可推广至中亚、中东及北非类似的沙漠湖泊周边地区。