TASHKENT: Uzbekistan has started producing synthetic fuel, including synthetic diesel, for the first time at its gas-to-liquids (GTL) plant, the Uzbek Energy Ministry said Thursday. According to agreements, the first batch 5,000 tons of synthetic diesel will be sent to the Navoi Mining and Metallurgical Combine, Uzbekistan’s largest gold producer, it said. Uzbekistan launched its first GTL plant located in the Kashkadarya region last December. The 3.6-billion-U.S.-dollar project will annually produce 1.5 million tons of synthetic liquid fuels, such as kerosene, diesel, liquefied petroleum gas and naphtha from domestic natural gas.