It has been a year of historic change in Kazakhstan with President Kassym Jomart-Tokayev ushering in a wave of democratic reforms in the country to create a more free and fair society. Among these changes are fundamental reforms in the government system, creating more transparency and accountability, electoral reforms, as well as reforms in almost all areas of life – including the environment and renewable energy. sources (RES).
Tokayev’s green-economy plan
Kazakhstan has put forward the ambitious “2050 Green Economy Plan” as well as the 2060 Carbon Neutral Statement, a commitment to the 2030 Global Climate Agenda. In 2013, Kazakhstan adopted a plan to transition to a green economy and in 2016, Kazakhstan signed the Paris Agreement pledging to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Indeed, despite its resource-rich land and its access to fossil fuels, Kazakhstan has long been developing RES to help alleviate the energy challenges of our time, which has been incorporated into Kazakhstan’s legislation since 2009. As Kazakhstan prepares for a future large increase in energy use, the government has begun projects to build more sustainable, earth-friendly solutions. In October 2022, President Tokayev emphasized the importance of increasing RES, as several projects are being developed in the Almaty region, including a wind farm in the Shelek corridor, a hydropower plant in the Raiymbek district, and the Bartogai hydropower plant in Yenbekshikazakh district. .
After Kazakhstan’s aggressive steps towards decarbonization, the World Bank also showed its support, “We are ready to help the government in greening the economy through technical advice and investments in sectors,” said the Vice President of World Bank for Europe and Central Asia. Anna Bjerde. With the current global instability in the energy market, there is no more important than now to change the energy sector.
142 renewable energy facilities
Already, there are 142 renewable energy facilities in Kazakhstan, with an installed capacity of 2332 MW. There are also 48 new energy projects on the agenda for 2025, including 13 hydroelectric power plants, 34 wind turbines, and 12 solar stations. As part of
implementing these projects, 350 billion tenge will be invested in technology, an additional 2.5 billion kWh of green energy will be generated, and more than 2,000 temporary and 400 permanent jobs will be created.
In addition, Kazakhstan will launch 10 new renewable energy facilities soon, with a total capacity of 290.6 MW. It is estimated that in 2025, the national share of renewable energy will be 6%, 15% in 2030, and up to 50% in 2050.
The evidence of recent years also shows that these goals are not long lasting. At the end of 2021, the amount of electricity generated by renewable energy facilities accounted for 3.69% of the total electricity production, which is a 30% increase compared to the same period in 2020. At the end of the first half of 2022, the The amount of electricity generated by renewable energy facilities accounted for 4.24% of the total electricity production, which is a 17% increase compared to the same period in 2021.
In addition, experts estimate that there is 920 billion kW hours per year of potential from wind power, 62 billion kW hours from hydro, and great potential for solar energy in the southern region of Kazakhstan to receive 2,500 –3,000 hours of sunshine per year. In short, there is no limit to Kazakhstan’s potential for RES.
Attracting investments in new technologies
Beyond the already commissioned projects, Kazakhstan is doing everything possible to attract investment and new technologies. The Ministry of Energy also announced plans to start a new renewable energy auction, to be held every year, and to hold special RES auctions for electricity storage.
International auctions for 2018-2021 are held in electronic format for renewable energy projects with a total capacity of 1,710 MW. 196 companies from 12 countries participated in the auction: Kazakhstan, China, Russia, Turkey, Germany, France, Bulgaria, Italy, UAE, Netherlands, Malaysia, and Spain. This year, the auction is expected to take place from November 3-29, with a total capacity put up for auction of 690 MW.
These auctions make transparency in the process of choosing projects and investors possible, and, on the other hand, enable more efficient technologies and projects that reduce the impact of tariffs for end consumers from in the commissioning of renewable energy facilities.
$613million RES projects
Kazakhstan has succeeded in signing several critical agreements and memorandums with international financial institutions, in the amount of approximately $613 million to advance these RES projects. Investors from 10 countries of the world, as well as large financial
institutions like EBRD, ADB, Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank,
and DBK, currently working in Kazakhstan’s green energy sector. In addition, major companies such as Eni, TotalEren, ACWA Power, Masdar, and Havel, which have implemented projects in Kazakhstan in the past, have plans to develop further.
renewable energy projects and invested in the sector.
While Kazakhstan’s efforts for RES have already seen positive results, the Ministry of Energy together with interested parties will continue to develop RES by elaborating technical requirements for RES projects using electricity storage system, improving the mechanism for the development of small RES. , regulating the mechanism for concluding bilateral contracts between RES and consumers (including miners), and providing incentive mechanisms for large hydroelectric power.
Together, these measures and new technologies for RES will reduce pressures on Kazakhstan’s existing electricity grid, and help Kazakhstan meet the green energy goals of the international community.
