The construction of a new nuclear power plant in Kazakhstan will give Rosatom access to the huge electricity market throughout Central Asia. The total cost of the project at the Institute of Energy and Finance was estimated at $8-10 billion. Modern power units will allow Kazakhstan to protect the country's southern regions from power outages. For Russia, the construction of this plant is much more profitable than the construction of the Turkish Akkuyu nuclear power plant, experts say.

Atomic Memorandum between Moscow and Nur-Sultan

During the talks in Moscow, Presidents of Russia and Kazakhstan Vladimir Putin and Kassym-Jomart Tokayev discussed cooperation between the two countries in the field of nuclear energy. One of the main results of the business meeting was the signing of a joint memorandum between the Kazakh Ministry of Energy and the state corporation Rosatom.

The agreement implies the exchange of experience and training of Kazakhstani specialists. However, Tokayev has repeatedly stated earlier that the next step in energy cooperation with Moscow could be the construction of a new nuclear power plant.

It was not possible to receive a prompt response to the request from Rosatom.

Boris Martsinkevich, editor-in-chief of the analytical online magazine Geoenergetika, noted the multifactor nature of further training of Kazakhstani personnel.

“From the moment the BM-300 nuclear power plant was closed in the republic, the nuclear school was gradually lost in the country.

However, the necessary base remains - Kazakh colleagues can learn a lot from Russian specialists, from the design of power units to geological exploration of the area and technical maintenance of nuclear facilities," the analyst explained.

In January 2022, Kazakhstan faced problems in the energy supply of the southern regions of the country. This happened during a lockdown caused by a short circuit at the Syrdarya TPP in Uzbekistan. The two Central Asian countries are connected by a common energy network, which resulted in the forced withdrawal of “heat” from Nur-Sultan by Tashkent.

At the end of last year, the ex-head of the Ministry of Energy of Kazakhstan, Magzum Mirzagaliev, announced possible geographical points for the construction of a future nuclear power plant. These are the Ulken settlement in the Alma-Ata region and the city of Kurchatov in the East Kazakhstan region. Mirzagaliyev stressed that the final decision on the site selection has not yet been made.

Price and construction time

As the experience of building a nuclear power plant in Belarus shows, it can take 8-10 years from the start of work on the site to the commissioning of the facility. The total cost of Rosatom for the construction of a nuclear power plant with two VVER-1200 reactors will be approximately $8-10 billion, the Institute of Energy and Finance reported.

According to Martsinkevich, the construction of power units using Russian technologies, under favorable circumstances, can take half as much time. For example, not so long ago, Rosatom set a record for the construction of nuclear power plants in China - just over 4.5 years.

Aleksey Anpilogov, President of the Foundation "Osnovanie", said earlier that the average cost of construction by Rosatom of one nuclear power unit is approximately $2-3 billion. Martsinkevich noted that Western counterparts are much more expensive. As illustrative examples, the analyst pointed to the British and Finnish nuclear power plants Hinkley Point Sea and Olkiluoto.

“Great Britain spent £22 billion on the construction of two reactors. In this regard, Hinckley Point can be called, without exaggeration, the most expensive piece of real estate in the history of mankind.

The English can be proud that such an honor fell to their lot. The Finnish nuclear power plant cost half as much - €11 billion, but it is still several times less than the cost of Russian projects, ”explained Martsinkevich.

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NPP geolocation options

The average annual output of NPPs reaches about 18-19 billion kWh. This can completely close the problem of blackouts in the southern energy zone of Kazakhstan. The best choice of geolocation for the future object will be the Alma-Ata region.

“Kazakhstan's energy system consists of three energy zones: North, South and West, the latter operates in isolation. The energy zone of the North is in surplus thanks to large thermal power plants, while in the South, generation covers less than half of consumption. The deficit is covered by flows from the North. However, this scheme, as the January blackout showed, can fail,” the Institute of Energy and Finance stressed.

Martsinkevich singled out the South-East of the country among the possible construction sites for a new nuclear power plant in Kazakhstan. This is primarily due to the technical features of the station.

“NPP reactors require cooling. For this reason, the future station must be built in those regions of Kazakhstan where there are sufficient water resources. The best option would be the city of Balkhash, next to which is the country's largest reservoir of the same name. The Irtysh may be an alternative, but in the north of Kazakhstan, everything is in order with generation,” the analyst argues.Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news » Back to news »

Will NPP solve the problem of electricity shortage

For the first time, the issue of Russia’s construction of a nuclear power plant (NPP) in Kazakhstan was raised in 2019 at a meeting of the presidents of the two countries. Then Putin offered Tokayev technological assistance for the construction of a nuclear power plant in the republic according to a Russian project. In 2021, bilateral discussions resumed with a new impetus against the backdrop of a rapid increase in electricity consumption and the transition of the Kazakh energy system to a deficit, the Institute of Energy and Finance said.

“According to KEGOC, the republic’s power grid operator, in 2022 demand will exceed electricity generation by 4.6 billion kWh. It was this factor that largely became the reason for the support of the new nuclear power plant project by the head of the National Welfare Fund of Kazakhstan "Samruk-Kazyna" Satkaliyev," the institute stressed.

Martsinkevich noted that at present the country does not have a sufficient number of power lines that would connect the North with the South.

“Now Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan remain in the unified energy system. The main problem of Central Asia is the drying up of large rivers. Dushanbe used to have a hydroelectric power plant in case of power outages. The gradual shallowing of the Aral Sea and the reduction of glaciers may lead to the fact that the UN recognizes the entire region as water-deficient. In this case, five southern regions of Kazakhstan will be under attack,” Martsinkevich explained.

In this context, the expert stressed, the construction of a new nuclear power plant in the republic would be an ideal way out of the energy crisis. In addition, in this scenario, Russia will have access to the huge consumer market of Central Asia.

“70% of Afghanistan's electricity comes from Uzbekistan. Kazakhstan, in turn, is closely connected with Tashkent by a synchronized energy system and will experience a shortage of domestic consumption for the next five years.

In addition, the republic will be able to get away from coal dependence by reducing the levels of its carbon footprint. The new nuclear power plant is a multifaceted toy,” the expert noted.

At the same time, he emphasized the importance for Rosatom of direct access to the market of end consumers in Kazakhstan. Such, in particular, the state corporation managed to achieve in Turkey at the Akkuyu station. However, the energy potential of Central Asia is much higher than that of Turkey.

“Entering the unified energy system of the region will play a key role. The demand for electricity in the same Uzbekistan is growing annually up to 7%, in Kazakhstan this figure is also high - in the region of 5-7%. This is a multiple of the Russian indicators, against their background we are just turtles, ”concluded Martsinkevich.

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