Kazakhstan to attract huge investment in electricity sector
By Aynur Jafarova
Kazakhstan is planning to attract over 8 trillion tenges ($44 billion) of investment in the electricity sector of the country in 2016-2030, Deputy Energy Minister Bakhytzhan Dzhaksaliyev said last week.
“As part of our plans, we are supposed to achieve a number of
goals, in particular a significant decrease of the average level of
deterioration of electricity equipment in Kazakhstan by 2030,
attracting investments in the electricity sector in the amount of
8.2 trillion tenges for a period of 2016-2030 years, providing a
moderate growth rate for electricity to end-users by 2030 and
making the Unified Energy System of Kazakhstan independent and
self-sufficient by 2030,” he noted at an Energy Forum titled
"Innovation in the energy sector - Kazakhstan-2050".
Dzhaksaliyev also said a broader participation of the state in this
process is necessary to create an adequate investment climate in
the electricity sector.
He called for a corresponding increase in technical and technological requirements, as well as improving energy supervision over the implementation of these requirements for creating an effective energy system of the future.
The deputy energy minister went on adding that the annual volume of investment made in the electricity sector of Kazakhstan has increased five times over the past five years since application of the maximum tariffs. He said as of today, the investment amounts to about 700 billion tenges (180.87 tenge = $ 1).
“This allowed upgrading the existing 5,000 megawatts and putting into operation 1,700 megawatts of additional electrical capacity, which in turn fully covers the needs of the State program for accelerated industrial and innovative development of Kazakhstan's electricity. This figure will reach 3,300 megawatts by the end of 2015,” he said.
Electricity production amounted to 91.9 billion kilowatt / hours in Kazakhstan in 2013. This is 1.9 percent more than 2012.