Kazakhstan to continue renewable energy regardless of oil prices

kanat-bozumbayev

Kazakhstan will continue the active development of renewable energy in the decades to come regardless of oil prices, said Kanat Bozumbayev, the Kazakhstani Minister of Energy, at the Future Energy Forum in Astana.

The Minister emphasized that the Kazakhstani government started to develop green energy when oil prices were at USD 120 per barrel and it would continue its efforts, even if prices fell to USD 20 per barrel.

“Kazakhstan will be gradually integrating renewable energy sources into the national energy mix until 2020. From 2020 through 2030, the country will be following a more active approach. To achieve this, we have created a regulatory framework, clear indicators that will help us monitor the development of the state planning system and technical instruments to gauge the potential,” said Bozumbayev.

“The Republic already has 48 operating renewable energy facilities with a total capacity of 252.37 MW (hydroelectric power plants – 122.99 MW; wind power plants – 71.87 MW; solar power plants – 57.16 MW; biogas units – 0.35 MW) generating 0.94 percent of the electric energy produced in Kazakhstan,” added another Forum participant, Magzum Mirzagaliev, the Deputy Energy Minister of Kazakhstan.

By 2020, the Republic’s authorities intend to commission 23 solar power plants, about 20 wind power plants, over 10 hydroelectric power plants and a number of mini hydroelectric power plants.

According to the Ministry of Energy, Kazakhstan has determined its contribution to reducing emissions of greenhouse gases from 2021 through 2030: 15 percent as an absolute target and 25 percent as a hypothetical target by 2030 as against 1990.

Moreover, by 2020, the volume of gas production will reach approximately 65 billion cubic meters a year. This year, production is estimated at about 43 billion cubic meters.

“Besides boosting the export of gas, an increase in production will enable us to utilize gas in the domestic market more actively and to develop gas-fired generation instead of coal-based technologies. This will help lower the environmental impact of the national energy system and reduce greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere,” stressed Bozumbayev.

Rajani Baburajan

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