Smailov wants Ministry of Energy to accelerate construction of one-gigawatt wind power, a joint project with Saudi Arabia

The prime minister ordered the cabinet to accelerate the implementation of the AQWA Power project / Photo: primeminister.kz, Shutterstock and Wikimedia Commons

Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov has ordered the cabinet to accelerate the preparation process for the construction of a one-gigawatt wind station, a joint project with Saudi Arabia that is expected to start in 2025.

«We have already negotiated the construction of a big wind power station with a capacity of one gigawatt in the Jetisu region. The preparation process is currently underway. Once the final agreement is signed, construction will start. It is expected to happen in 2025. The prime minister has ordered the cabinet to accelerate administrative procedures and negotiate all necessary issues with authorized agencies,» the press service of the prime minister reported after a meeting on joint investment projects with Saudi Arabia.

On March 1, 2023, the Ministry of Energy of Kazakhstan, Samruk Kazyna and ACWA Power, a renewable energy developer from Saudi Arabia, agreed to build a one-gigawatt power station in Kazakhstan. In the agreement signed in Riyadh, the two sides negotiated a set of issues related to funding, constructing and exploiting the facility that is expected to be built in the Jongar Gate area, the Jetisu region in 2025.

Kazakhstan’s authorities expect that once the project is implemented, it will help the country reach its goal of boosting the role of green energy in Kazakhstan’s energy system. With that purpose in mind, a delegation of ACWA Power executives met with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev in the summer of 2022.

In January 2023, the Energy Ministry, Samruk Kazyna and Masdar, a developer and operator of renewable energy projects from the UAE, announced a plan to build a wind power plant either in the Jambyl region or Turkestan region with a capacity of 500 megawatts with a potential of accumulating energy in special batteries. This facility is also expected to be built in 2025.

In November 2022, Samruk Kazyna and Total Eren, a French renewable energy producer, agreed to build a wind farm with a capacity of one gigawatt and a system of batteries for accumulating energy. The project is expected to be implemented in 2026-2027 in the Zhambyl region and controlled by Total Eren (60%), Samruk Kazyna (20%) and KazMunayGas (20%).