The leaders of Turkmenistan and Belarus have attended the launch of a potash fertilizer plant worth more than $1 billion in eastern Turkmenistan.
Speaking at the ceremony in Lebap Province, Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov said the plant would help meet high domestic and export demand for the fertilizer.
The Garlyk mining and processing plant was built by Belarus, one of the world's leading producers of potash, near local potash deposits.
Construction was fully financed by the state, media reports said.
The plant is reportedly capable of producing 1.4 million tons of the fertilizer annually. It is expected to export its products to China, India, and other countries.