An autumn session of international bidding for a selection of renewable energy projects was completed in Kazakhstan. Representatives of the Kazakh Ministry of Energy say that both local and foreign investors show their interest in alternative energy. In total, 113 companies from nine countries took part in the bidding, including the companies from Kazakhstan, China, Russia, Turkey, France, Italy, and the Netherlands. Out of 30 winning companies, 23 are domestic ones.

ANATOLIY SHKARUPA, KAZAKH DEPUTY MINISTER OF ENERGY:

- When it comes to hydropower facilities and wind power plants, the volume of demand exceeded the supply by nearly two times. Auction bidders were very interested in implementing projects for construction of solar power plants, to which the volume of demand exceeded the supply by seven times.

Therefore, eight solar, six wind and three hydroelectric power plants will be built in Kazakhstan. Within two years the solar power plants with a capacity of 200 megawatts will be built in the Almaty, Turkestan, Zhambyl, Kyzylorda regions as well as near Shymkent. In the next three years, the wind turbines with a total capacity of 400 megawatts will be built in the Akmola, Almaty, Zhambyl, East Kazakhstan and North Kazakhstan regions. A hydroelectric station will be built in the south Kazakhstan region.

ANATOLIY SHKARUPA, KAZAKH DEPUTY MINISTER OF ENERGY:

- The most important requirement is that the equipment that will be used for all projects implemented in Kazakhstan has to be modern and new. If the equipment does not live out any standard life, then all the risks will be investor’s risks.

The autumn auction for alternative energy sources showed that the demand for the renewables in Kazakhstan significantly exceeds the supply. In a year, 36 projects were selected with a total capacity of 857 megawatts. The total volume of applications reached almost 3,500, thus the demand was almost four times higher than the offer. Experts say that such popularity is explained by Kazakhstan’s solar potential as well as the relatively simple process of implementing such projects. Kazakhstan has seen investment flow worth 70 billion tenge from these projects.