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Energy in Kazakhstan describes
energy In physics, energy (from Ancient Greek: ἐνέργεια, ''enérgeia'', “activity”) is the quantitative property that is transferred to a body or to a physical system, recognizable in the performance of work and in the form of heat a ...
and
electricity Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described ...
production, consumption and import in
Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
and the
politics of Kazakhstan The politics of Kazakhstan takes place in the framework of a presidential republic, whereby the President of Kazakhstan is head of state and nominates the head of government. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is ...
related to energy. Kazakhstan is net energy exporter. Kazakhstan has oil, gas, coal and uranium reserves. Kazakhstan is a leading energy producer in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). It is a major producer of oil, gas, and coal, as well as being the largest producer and exporter of uranium ore in the world. Kazakhstan's oil and gas industry has been intensively developing after 1999. China is one of the biggest investors in Kazakhstan's oil and gas industry. Kazakhstan 2050 Strategy commits to 50% of energy consumption come from renewable or alternative sources. According to IEA primary energy supply increased 29% and energy export 21% from 2004 to 2008 in Kazakhstan.


Energy by sources

In 2018 about half of energy was from coal and about a quarter each from oil and natural gas. Kazakhstan started looking for ways to use its renewable energy sources. In late January 2015, an action plan was adopted on the development of renewable energy for the period of 2013 to 2020. On July 20, 2015, Kazakhstan Investment and Development Minister announced that the country would establish a special fund engaged in financing energy-saving programs. In the first half of 2016, Kazakhstan significantly increased the installed capacity of renewable energy facilities, which totaled 251.55 megawatts. It is 1.4 times more than in the same period of 2015.


Oil

Kazakhstan has estimated 30 billion barrels of oil reserves. With 172 oilfields, Kazakhstan possesses 3% of global oil reserves, putting it among the world's top 15 countries in terms of oil reserves. The main reserves are in five largest onshore oil fields of Tengiz – the largest oil producing field with 565,000 barrels per day of crude in 2011 - Karachaganak, Aktobe, Mangistau, and Uzen, all of which are located in the western part of the country. These hold half of current proven reserves. The offshore fields of Kashagan and Kurmanagazy in the Caspian Sea are estimated to hold minimum 14 million barrels. With 9 – 11 billion barrels, Kashagan is the largest oil field outside of the Middle East. It is estimated to come on stream in 2016 and reach production of 1.5 million barrels per day at its peak. Kazakhstan is a major oil producer with an estimated total production of 1.64 million barrels per day in 2013. The country consumes around 13 percent of the supply domestically and exports the rest to major oil markets. To continue expanding the liquids production above its current levels, the country needs to develop its Tengiz, Karachaganak, and Kashagan fields as well as add export capacity.US Energy Information Administration Kazakhstan Snapshot 2013
/ref> KazMunayGas (KMG), the national oil and gas company, was created in 2002 to represent the interests of the state in the oil and gas industry. The oil production development has been made possible largely due to significant foreign investment, primarily from the Netherlands and the US in the early 2000s. In 2010, the Kazakh government took away KMG's responsibility to regulate the sector to enable the company's higher level of involvement in the commercial sector. The government now reserves a majority stake for KMG in all new projects and joint ventures. KMG now controls 20 percent of total oil and gas proved reserves of Kazakhstan and produces 27 percent of total oil and gas condensate and 14 percent of gas. Kazakhstan has three major refineries - Atyrau, Shymkent and Pavlodar. Their combined crude refining capacity amounts to around 350,000 barrels per day, roughly evenly split amongst the three. Due to aged infrastructure, they mostly operate only at 60 percent of their capacity. The government has made significant investment in the modernization of these units to be completed around 2016. In mid-2016, a group of oil companies led by Chevron announced a $36.8 billion investment deal for the development of Kazakhstan's Tengiz oil field. According to experts, this investment may allow Kazakhstan to become a top 10 oil producer. Kazakhstan decreased its oil production by 4.3% as part of the agreements reached with the OPEC +. OPEC+, which also includes non-OPEC allies, including Kazakhstan and Russia, agreed in April to a record global oil cut of 9.7 million barrels per day from May 1. In November 2020, the Kazakh Government confirmed that the country fulfilled the OPEC+ obligations by 99%. Kazakhstan is estimated to have around of crude oil reserves. In 2018, this would make Kazakhstan twelfth in the amount of total proven oil reserves globally. When discovered in the 1990s, the Kashagan oil field was the second largest oil field in the world. In 2000s, the oil production has increased rapidly due to foreign investment and improvements in production efficiencies. In 2006, Kazakhstan produced 54 million tons of crude oil and 10.5 million tons of gas condensate , which makes Kazakhstan eighteenth-largest oil producer in the world. At these production levels Kazakhstan is thought to have approximately 50 years of remaining production. According to the president Nursultan Nazarbayev, Kazakhstan is planning to increase its oil production up to of oil a day, of which 3 million will go to export. This will lift Kazakhstan into the ranks of the world's top 10 oil-producing nations. The government views the oil and gas sector as strategically important for the economy and the share of state involvement in the management over petroleum resources remains high. The main production sites are the
Tengiz field Tengiz field ( kk, Теңіз мұнай кен орны, ''Teñız mūnai ken orny''; Tengiz is Turkic for "sea") is an oil field located in northwestern Kazakhstan's low-lying wetlands along the northeast shores of the Caspian Sea. It covers ...
, located on the northeast shores of the Caspian, and the
Karachaganak field Karachaganak Field ( kk, Қарашығанақ мұнай-газ конденсат кен орны, ''Qarashyǵanaq munaı-gaz kondensat ken orny'') is a gas condensate field about east of Aksay (Ақсай) in northwest Kazakhstan. It was onc ...
, located inland near to Russian border. In future Kazakh oil production will also rely on the
Kashagan field Kashagan Field ( kk, Қашаған кен орны, ''Qashaǵan ken orny'') is an offshore oil field in Kazakhstan's zone of the Caspian Sea. The field, discovered in 2000, is located in the northern part of the Caspian Sea close to Atyrau and ...
, the largest oil field outside the Middle East, which possess anywhere from to in recoverable reserves, and the
Kurmangazy field The Kurmangazy oil field is an offshore oil field located in the Kazakh section of the Caspian Sea on the maritime border between Russia and Kazakhstan, about west of the Buzachi Peninsula. It is expected to be the third largest oil field of Kazak ...
in Northern Kazakhstan. There are some smaller oil fields near the Chinese border, which are not developed/operational yet. 76% of Kazakhstan's oil and gas production and remaining reserves are concentrated in these three oil fields, as well as the Uzen Field. 14% of reserves and production are located in 6 further fields. The leading oil industry is state-owned oil company KazMunayGas. The landmark foreign investment in Kazakh oil industry is the
TengizChevroil Tengizchevroil is a joint venture between Chevron (50% share in the consortium), ExxonMobil (25% share), KazMunayGas (20% share) and LukArco (5% share). The joint venture was formed in April 1993, when the government of Kazakhstan granted exclusiv ...
joint venture, owned 50% by
ChevronTexaco Chevron Corporation is an American multinational energy corporation. The second-largest direct descendant of Standard Oil, and originally known as the Standard Oil Company of California (shortened to Socal or CalSo), it is headquartered in Sa ...
, 25% by
ExxonMobil ExxonMobil Corporation (commonly shortened to Exxon) is an American multinational oil and gas corporation headquartered in Irving, Texas. It is the largest direct descendant of John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil, and was formed on November 30, ...
, 20% by the Government of Kazakhstan, and 5% by
Lukarco LukArco B.V. is a subsidiary of the Russian oil company Lukoil. It was formed in February 1997 as a joint venture between Lukoil and the former American oil company ARCO. In 2000, Arco merged with the UK oil company BP, and since BP became a shareh ...
of Russia. The Karachaganak natural gas and gas condensate field is being developed by BG,
Agip Agip (''Azienda Generale Italiana Petroli'', en, General Italian Oil Company) is an Italian automotive gasoline, diesel, LPG, lubricants, fuel oil, and bitumen retailer established in 1926. It has been a subsidiary of the multinational petroleu ...
, ChevronTexaco, and
Lukoil The PJSC Lukoil Oil Company ( stylized as LUKOIL or ЛУКОЙЛ in Cyrillic script) is a Russian multinational energy corporation headquartered in Moscow, specializing in the business of extraction, production, transport, and sale of petrol ...
. Also Chinese,
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
n and
Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
n oil companies are involved in the Kazakhstan's oil industry. Kazakhstan has three oil refineries: in
Pavlodar Pavlodar ( ; ) is a city in northeastern Kazakhstan and the capital of Pavlodar Region. It is located 450 km northeast of the national capital Astana and 405 km southeast of the Russian city of Omsk along the Irtysh River. , the cit ...
, in
Atyrau Atyrau ( kk, Атырау, ', ; russian: Атырау, ), known until 1991 as Guryev (russian: Гурьев, ), is a city in Kazakhstan and the capital of Atyrau Region. Atyrau is a transcontinental city, at the mouth of the Ural River on the Cas ...
, and in
Shymkent Shymkent (; Шымкент, Şymkent), known until 1993 as Chimkent ( uz, Çımkent, چىمكېنت; Yañalif: Çimkent ()); russian: Чимкент, translit=Chimkent (), is a city in Kazakhstan. It is near the border with Uzbekistan. It is one ...
. Pavlodar and Shymkent refineries process West Siberian crude oil, which is imported through the
Omsk Omsk (; rus, Омск, p=omsk) is the administrative center and largest city of Omsk Oblast, Russia. It is situated in southwestern Siberia, and has a population of over 1.1 million. Omsk is the third largest city in Siberia after Novosibirsk ...
(Russia) - Pavlodar (Kazakhstan) - Shymkent -
Türkmenabat Türkmenabat ( tk, Türkmenabat, Түркменабат), formerly and since medieval times Chardzhou, (russian: Чарджоу, ''Chardzhou''; tk, Çärjew, links=no, ) ( fa, چهارجوی 'čahârjuy', meaning 'four brooks') and in ancient ti ...
(
Turkmenistan Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the sout ...
) pipeline.


Natural Gas

Kazakhstan's proven reserves of natural gas are 85 trillion cubic feet. (2013). Majority of natural gas reserves are located in the west of Kazakhstan and concentrated in four fields – Karachanganak (46 percent), Tengiz (12 percent), Imashevskoye (7 percent) and Kashagan (12 percent). Between 2000 and 2012 the natural gas production increased four times to 40.1 billion cubic meters in 2012. However, only 53 percent of this gas was for commercial purposes; the rest was re-injected into oil fields to enhance production. Kazakhstan's gas production suffices to meet domestic demand of 10.5 billion cubic meters (2012). However, due to limited internal gas pipeline network that does not connect all the production centers (west) with demand centers (south, east, north), the country needs to import gas from Uzbekistan to satisfy the demand in the south of the country and from Russia to satisfy demand in the north and east. In 2012, the country exported 8.8 billion cubic meters of gas to China through the Central Asia – China pipeline. Kazakhstan serves as a major transit country for gas exports from Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan that are destined to Russia and China. In 2012, the amount of gas transited through Kazakhstan was 96.5 billion cubic meters. Kazakhstan's domestic hydrocarbon reserves amount to 3.3–3.7 trillion cubic metres of gas, of which 2.5 tcm are proven. However, Kazakhstan became a net gas exporter only in 2003. In 2007, Kazakhstan produced 29 bcm of natural gas and plans to increase its gas output to 60-80 bcm a year by 2015. The major natural gas fields are Karachaganak, Tengiz, Kashagan, Amangeldy, Zhanazhol, Urikhtau and Chinarevskoye. Kazakhstan's major gas company is KazMunaiGaS JSC that has a reported annual income of about $3 billion in 2013.


Coal

Kazakhstan sits on Central Asia's largest recoverable coal reserves. At 33.6 billion tonnes the reserves represent 3.8 percent of global total reserves. (2013). In 2013, the country produced 58.4 million tonnes. Coal production stands at 70 percent of what it was during the Soviet Union. The largest coal producer is Bogatyr Coal that operates the largest 4.5 billion tons open-pit coal mine in the world in Ekibastuz in the northeastern region of Kazakhstan. In 2012 Bogatyr Coal produced 46 million tons of coal. Majority of coal, 75 percent, is used for domestic consumption, power generation in particular. The largest importers of Kazakhstan's oil include the neighboring southern Russia and Ukraine. A major concern of the coal mines of Kazakhstan is safety and prevention and control of mine explosions. In 2009 Kazakhstan was ''8. top coal producer'': 96 million tonnes
hard coal Anthracite, also known as hard coal, and black coal, is a hard, compact variety of coal that has a submetallic luster. It has the highest carbon content, the fewest impurities, and the highest energy density of all types of coal and is the high ...
and 5 million tonnes
brown coal Lignite, often referred to as brown coal, is a soft, brown, combustible, sedimentary rock formed from naturally compressed peat. It has a carbon content around 25–35%, and is considered the lowest rank of coal due to its relatively low heat ...
. 22 Mt of hard coal was exported (2009). In 2009 Kazakhstan was world 8. top coal exporter. The top hard coal net exporters in 2009 were (Mt):
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
262,
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
230,
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
93,
Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
69,
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
67,
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
33,
Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...
25, Kazakhstan 22,
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
20 and
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
4. The coal of Kazakhstan has low energy value 0.444 toe/tonne compared to e.g. in this respect top coal of Australia 0.689 toe/tonne. Assuming both hard coal 96 Mt and brown coal 6 Mt having about the same energy value,: the coal production would have been about 101 Mt*0.444 toe/Mt*11.630 TWh/toe = 521 TWh in 2009 and export .22*0.444 toe/Mt*11.630 TWh/toe = 114 TWh. Although Kazakhstan is a substantial producer of oil and gas, coal has dominated both energy production and consumption.Caspian Oil and Gas
,
International Energy Agency The International Energy Agency (IEA) is a Paris-based autonomous intergovernmental organisation, established in 1974, that provides policy recommendations, analysis and data on the entire global energy sector, with a recent focus on curbing carb ...
, 1998,
It contains Central Asia's largest recoverable coal reserves, with 34.5 billion short tons of mostly anthracitic and bituminous coal.Kazakhstan energy data, statistics and analysis - coal
US Energy Information Agency
Major coal fields are Bogatyr and Severny. In 2005, Kazakhstan was the 9th biggest producer of coal in the world, and the 10th global exporter.Key World Energy Statistics. 2006 Edition
,
International Energy Agency The International Energy Agency (IEA) is a Paris-based autonomous intergovernmental organisation, established in 1974, that provides policy recommendations, analysis and data on the entire global energy sector, with a recent focus on curbing carb ...
2006
Russia is the largest importer of Kazakh coal, followed by
Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
. The biggest coal production company is Bogatyr Access Komir, which accounts for approximately 35% of Kazakh coal output.


Electricity

An executive order directs that renewables sources supply 15% of Kazakhstan's total energy grid by 2030. If achieved, the domestic energy and labor sectors would be reshaped. In 2013, the country produced 93.76 billion kWH - 70 billion kWh (81%) from coal, 8 from gas and 8 from hydro. The country has 71 power stations, including 5 hydro power plants located on the Irtysh river, which translates to total installed generating capacity of 19.6 GW. 75 percent of electricity generated is consumed by industry, 11 percent by households, 2 percent by transportation. Kazakhstan largest solar power station "Burboye Solar-1" LLP was commissioned in July 2015. Since then during a year of operation the solar power station produced over 38.4 million kWh. Besides "Burboye Solar-1", the Zhambyl region implements nine projects of alternative energy sources. In 2021 it was the 3rd largest
Bitcoin Bitcoin ( abbreviation: BTC; sign: ₿) is a decentralized digital currency that can be transferred on the peer-to-peer bitcoin network. Bitcoin transactions are verified by network nodes through cryptography and recorded in a public distr ...
miner.


Policy

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
owns large reserves of energy resources, and therefore the energy policy of Kazakhstan has influence over the world's overall energy supply. Although Kazakhstan has not described itself as an energy superpower, Kazakhstan's former president
Nursultan Nazarbayev Nursultan Abishuly Nazarbayev ( kk, Нұрсұлтан Әбішұлы Назарбаев, Nūrsūltan Äbişūlı Nazarbaev, ; born 6 July 1940) is a Kazakh politician and military officer who served as the first President of Kazakhstan, in off ...
claimed Kazakhstan will become a factor of
energy security Energy security is the association between national security and the availability of natural resources for energy consumption. Access to (relatively) cheap energy has become essential to the functioning of modern economies. However, the uneven ...
in Asia and Europe. Kazakhstan has a strategic geographical location to control oil and gas flows from
Central Asia Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a subregion, region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes t ...
to East (
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
) and West (
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
, EU, global market). Kazakhstan was a partner country of the EU
INOGATE INOGATE was an international energy co-operation programme between the European Union (EU), the littoral states of the Black and Caspian seas and their neighbouring countries. The programme was operational from 1996 to 2016. INOGATE was one of ...
energy programme, which had four key topics: enhancing
energy security Energy security is the association between national security and the availability of natural resources for energy consumption. Access to (relatively) cheap energy has become essential to the functioning of modern economies. However, the uneven ...
,
convergence Convergence may refer to: Arts and media Literature *''Convergence'' (book series), edited by Ruth Nanda Anshen *Convergence (comics), "Convergence" (comics), two separate story lines published by DC Comics: **A four-part crossover storyline that ...
of member state
energy market Energy markets are national and international regulated markets that deal specifically with the trade and supply of energy. Energy market may refer to an electricity market, but can also refer to other sources of energy. Typically energy developme ...
s on the basis of EU internal energy market principles, supporting
sustainable energy Energy is sustainable if it "meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs". Most definitions of sustainable energy include considerations of environmental aspects such as greenh ...
development, and attracting
investment Investment is the dedication of money to purchase of an asset to attain an increase in value over a period of time. Investment requires a sacrifice of some present asset, such as time, money, or effort. In finance, the purpose of investing i ...
for energy projects of common and regional interest. In 2013 Kazakhstan became the first country in Central Asia to launch an economy-wide carbon emissions system to cap emissions from its biggest emitters in the energy, coal, oil and gas extraction sectors.


Overview

The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources was the responsible governmental agency for energy policies until March 2010 when it was dissolved and replaced by the Ministry of Oil and Gas and the Ministry for Industry and New Technologies. In June 2003, the government of Kazakhstan announced a new
Caspian Sea The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, often described as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia; east of the Caucasus, west of the broad steppe of Central Asia ...
development program, according to which new offshore blocks of oil and gas to be auctioned. In 2005, the government introduced new restrictions granting to the state-owned oil and gas company
KazMunayGas KazMunayGas (KMG) ( kk, QazMúnayGaz, ҚазМұнайГаз) is the state-owned oil and gas company of Kazakhstan.
status of contractor and at least half of any
production sharing agreement Production sharing agreements (PSAs) or production sharing contracts (PSCs) are a common type of contract signed between a government and a resource extraction company (or group of companies) concerning how much of the resource (usually oil) extra ...
(PSA). New tax structure, enforced in January 2004, included a so-called "rent tax" on exports, a progressive tax that increases as oil prices grow. The amendment raised the government's share of oil income to a range of 65-85%.The new structure includes an excess profit tax, and limits foreign participation to 50 percent in each offshore project with no guarantees of operatorship. In 2005, Kazakhstan amended the subsoil law to preempt the sale of oil assets in the country and to extend the government’s power to buy back energy assets by limiting the transfer of property rights to strategic assets in Kazakhstan. Kazakhstan projects to inject 9.4 trillion tenge to prop up its power sector until 2030. Some 5.5 trillion tenge will be directed to power generation, 1.4 trillion to the national power grid and 2.5 trillion tenge to regional power distribution companies. The draft published in October 2012 provides for creating a unified power system, reducing environmental stress, increasing the share of renewable energy sources in Kazakhstan's power generation and introducing energy-efficient technologies. In 2013, Kazakhstan adopted the Energy Efficiency 2020 Program that would reduce emission 10% every year until 2015. Adopted by Prime Minister
Serik Akhmetov Serik Nyghmetuly Akhmetov ( kk, Серік Нығметұлы Ахметов, translit=Serık Nyğmetūly Ahmetov, ; born 25 June 1958) was a Prime Minister of Kazakhstan from 2012 to 2014. He served as the Minister of Defense from April to Octobe ...
, this new law would help reduce emissions and help with energy efficient solutions from large companies to small families. 2,000 industrial enterprises would be energy audits to meet with the new law. The program in the long run reduces the amount of energy per square meter by 30% and reduce costs by 14%.


Primary energy sources

Kazakhstan oil, gas, coal and uranium reserves are among the ten biggest in the world.


Uranium

Kazakhstan is the number one country in the world for
uranium production Uranium mining is the process of extraction of uranium ore from the ground. Over 50 thousand tons of uranium were produced in 2019. Kazakhstan, Canada, and Australia were the top three uranium producers, respectively, and together account f ...
volumes, and it owns the world second biggest
uranium reserves Uranium is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol U and atomic number 92. It is a silvery-grey metal in the actinide series of the periodic table. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons. ...
after
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
(around 1.5 million tons or nearly 19% of the explored reserves of uranium in the world). In 2012 Kazakhstan produced 20,900 metric tons of uranium, of which 11,900 metric tons were produced by Kazatomprom, a state-owned holding company (2011: 19,450 total / 11,079 Kazatomprom). Kazatomprom also represents Kazakhstan in the joint ventures with Russian
Tekhsnabexport Techsnabexport (russian: АО "Техснабэкспорт"), internationally known as TENEX, is an overseas trading company that is owned by Russian state-owned company Rosatom. Techsnabexport is an exporter of enriched uranium and a supplier o ...
, French
AREVA Areva S.A. is a French multinational group specializing in nuclear power headquartered in Courbevoie, France. Before its 2016 corporate restructuring, Areva was majority-owned by the French state through the French Alternative Energies and Atom ...
and
Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
Cameco Cameco Corporation (formerly Canadian Mining and Energy Corporation) is the world's largest publicly traded uranium company, based in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. In 2015, it was the world's second largest uranium producer, accounting for 18 ...
. All of produced uranium is going for export as the country's only nuclear power plant in
Aktau Aktau ( kk, Aqtau, Ақтау , russian: Актау) is a city in Kazakhstan, located on the eastern shore of the Caspian Sea. Its current name means "white mountain" in Kazakh, which may be due to its cliffs that overlook the Caspian. From 1964 to ...
was shut down in June 1999. There is a plan to build a new 1,500 MW nuclear plant in the southeast of Kazakhstan, near Lake Balkash.Kazakhstan energy data, statistics and analysis - electricity
US Energy Information Agency
According to the mayor,
Kyzylorda Kyzylorda ( kk, Қызылорда, translit=Qyzylorda, ), formerly known as Kzyl-Orda (russian: Кзыл-Орда), Ak-Mechet (Ак-Мечеть), Perovsk (Перовск), and Fort-Perovsky (Форт-Перовский), is a city in south-cen ...
is planning to produce two-thirds of
Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
's
uranium Uranium is a chemical element with the symbol U and atomic number 92. It is a silvery-grey metal in the actinide series of the periodic table. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons. Uranium is weak ...
by 2015. In 2014, Kazakhstan and the
IAEA The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is an intergovernmental organization that seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy and to inhibit its use for any military purpose, including nuclear weapons. It was established in 1957 ...
will sign an agreement to establish a low-enriched uranium fuel bank. The bank will be a place for countries to contribute uranium and disperse it to other nations safely for energy means with the IAEA being the governing body. In August 2013, IAEA Director General
Yukiya Amano was a Japanese diplomat and the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) (July 2009 – 2019). Amano previously served as an international civil servant for the United Nations and its subdivisions. Early life Amano was ...
visited Kazakhstan to further discussions on the fuel bank and praised Kazakhstan's contribution to
nuclear non-proliferation Nuclear proliferation is the spread of nuclear weapons, fissionable material, and weapons-applicable nuclear technology and information to nations not recognized as "List of states with nuclear weapons, Nuclear Weapon States" by the Treaty on ...
. In 2012, Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
said during a meeting with Kazakhstan's
Foreign Minister A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between cou ...
Erlan Idrissov Erlan Abilfayizuly Idrissov ( kk, Ерлан Әбілфайызұлы Ыдырысов, tr, Erlan Äbılfaiyzūly Ydyrysov, ; born 28 April 1959) ...
in Washington, "We view Kazakhstan not only as a regional player, but also as a global leader. Few countries can be compared to Kazakhstan in terms of its experience in non-proliferation." Kazakhstan announced in January 2017 that the country was planning to cut its production of uranium by 10% due to a global oversupply of the commodity. According to Kazatomprom, state-owned uranium company and global production leader, even with the announced output cuts, Kazakhstan will continue to be the world’s No.1 uranium producer.


Electricity

The Law on Electricity was adopted in July 2004. Another basic act regulating electricity market is the Law on Natural Monopolies, which was last amended in December 2004. The market regulator is the Agency for Regulation of Natural Monopolies (ANMR). Kazakhstan's electricity system includes 71 power plants with total installed capacity of 18,572 MW.Kazakhstan – electricity market
, International energy regulation network
the largest power plant is a coal-fired AES Ekibastuz GRES-2 in north-central Kazakhstan. 86.5% of electric power generation has been privatized. The government does not regulate prices for electricity, and consumers have free choice among providers of electric power (currently there is 15 licensed electricity traders).Kazakhstan profile
, Energy Regulators Regional Association
Transmission system is owned and operated by the state-owned company
KEGOC Kazakhstan Electricity Grid Operating Company (KEGOC) joint-stok company is a Nur-Sultan based state company of Kazakhstan established in 1997. General information KEGOC is the System Operator of the Unified Power System (UPS) of Kazakhstan, an ...
. As of 1 January 2006, the total length of transmission lines was 23,383 km. There are 18 regional distribution (sale) companies. Government regulates transmission and distribution tariffs.


Renewable energy

Kazakhstan possesses 5 operational hydroelectric plants which provide roughly 12% of the electricity generation. The majority of the facilities are located on the
Irtysh River The Irtysh ( otk, 𐰼𐱅𐰾:𐰇𐰏𐰕𐰏, Ertis ügüzüg, mn, Эрчис мөрөн, ''Erchis mörön'', "erchleh", "twirl"; russian: Иртыш; kk, Ертіс, Ertis, ; Chinese: 额尔齐斯河, pinyin: ''É'ěrqísī hé'', Xiao'erj ...
. Other renewables are largely undeveloped although Kazakhstan has potential in renewable energy resources. Renewable energy sources could be particularly attractive in isolated rural areas.


= Wind

= A planned 100 MW wind farm, one of the largest in Central Asia, is expected to be constructed in 2020 in Zhanatas with funding support from the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.


Nuclear energy

Kazakhstan currently has no
nuclear power Nuclear power is the use of nuclear reactions to produce electricity. Nuclear power can be obtained from nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear fusion reactions. Presently, the vast majority of electricity from nuclear power is produced b ...
generation capacity, as the
Aktau Aktau ( kk, Aqtau, Ақтау , russian: Актау) is a city in Kazakhstan, located on the eastern shore of the Caspian Sea. Its current name means "white mountain" in Kazakh, which may be due to its cliffs that overlook the Caspian. From 1964 to ...
nuclear reactor A nuclear reactor is a device used to initiate and control a fission nuclear chain reaction or nuclear fusion reactions. Nuclear reactors are used at nuclear power plants for electricity generation and in nuclear marine propulsion. Heat from nu ...
, the country's only
nuclear power plant A nuclear power plant (NPP) is a thermal power station in which the heat source is a nuclear reactor. As is typical of thermal power stations, heat is used to generate steam that drives a steam turbine connected to a electric generator, generato ...
, was shut down in June 1999. However, there is currently a plan to build a new 1,500 MW nuclear plant in the southeast of Kazakhstan, near Lake Balkash.


Energy transportation

Kazakhstan's oil pipeline system is operated by KazTransOil which was formed in 1997 when the two previous oil pipeline companies were combined. It is owed 100% by KazMunaiGaz which is also the owner of KazTransGaz which along with KazRosGaz are the two principle gas transportation companies. KazRosGaz is a joint venture between KazMunaiGaz and Gazprom which is involved in the export and trade of gas with Russia.


Oil pipelines

Main oil export routes are the
Caspian Pipeline Consortium The Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) is a consortium and an oil pipeline to transport Caspian oil from Tengiz field to the Novorossiysk-2 Marine Terminal, an export terminal at the Russian Black Sea port of Novorossiysk. It is one of the world's ...
and the Atyrau-Samara oil pipeline to Russia, and Kazakhstan-China oil pipeline to China. Kazakhstan is also a transit country for the
Omsk Omsk (; rus, Омск, p=omsk) is the administrative center and largest city of Omsk Oblast, Russia. It is situated in southwestern Siberia, and has a population of over 1.1 million. Omsk is the third largest city in Siberia after Novosibirsk ...
(Russia) -
Pavlodar Pavlodar ( ; ) is a city in northeastern Kazakhstan and the capital of Pavlodar Region. It is located 450 km northeast of the national capital Astana and 405 km southeast of the Russian city of Omsk along the Irtysh River. , the cit ...
(Kazakhstan) -
Shymkent Shymkent (; Шымкент, Şymkent), known until 1993 as Chimkent ( uz, Çımkent, چىمكېنت; Yañalif: Çimkent ()); russian: Чимкент, translit=Chimkent (), is a city in Kazakhstan. It is near the border with Uzbekistan. It is one ...
-
Türkmenabat Türkmenabat ( tk, Türkmenabat, Түркменабат), formerly and since medieval times Chardzhou, (russian: Чарджоу, ''Chardzhou''; tk, Çärjew, links=no, ) ( fa, چهارجوی 'čahârjuy', meaning 'four brooks') and in ancient ti ...
(
Turkmenistan Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the sout ...
) pipeline. The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline and
Neka Neka ( fa, نكا, also Romanized as Nekā’ and Nekā; also known as Nīkā; formerly, Nāranj Bāgh) is a city and capital of Neka County, Mazandaran Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 46,152, in 11,941 families. Geograph ...
in
Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
could be supplied by oil tankers. In addition, for the export to neighboring countries the rail transport is used. The Kazakhstan oil infrastructure is considered to be in poor condition which has constrained possible exports. Currently exports excluding the
Caspian Pipeline Consortium The Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) is a consortium and an oil pipeline to transport Caspian oil from Tengiz field to the Novorossiysk-2 Marine Terminal, an export terminal at the Russian Black Sea port of Novorossiysk. It is one of the world's ...
is limited to . Kazakhstan is also further hampered as the oil pipeline infrastructure is not set up to transport oil from the producing assets in the west to the main refineries located in the east of the country. The CPC provides an important outlet for Kazakhstan oil and it is expected that it will be up graded so as to export close to .


Natural gas pipelines

The natural gas trunk pipeline system stretches 10,138 kilometers. The major transit pipelines are the
Central Asia-Center gas pipeline system Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
and the Bukhara-Urals pipeline, which transport natural gas from
Turkmenistan Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the sout ...
and
Uzbekistan Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked cou ...
to Russia, and Orenburg-Novopskov pipeline and Soyuz pipeline from Orenburg processing plant to Europe. The Gazli-Bishkek pipeline transports natural gas from Uzbekistan to
Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan,, pronounced or the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the south, and the People's Republic of China to the east. ...
. The Central Asia-Center and the Bukhara-Urals pipelines as also the Bukhara-Tashkent-Bishkek-Almaty pipeline are also main import pipelines. The main gas export goes to
Orenburg Orenburg (russian: Оренбу́рг, ), formerly known as Chkalov (1938–1957), is the administrative center of Orenburg Oblast, Russia. It lies on the Ural River, southeast of Moscow. Orenburg is also very close to the Kazakhstan-Russia bor ...
processing plant in Russia. The export to Russia goes also through the Central Asia-Center and the Bukhara-Urals pipelines. There is plan to build a natural gas pipeline to China. To supply this pipeline, the Ishim (Rudny)-Petropavlovsk-Kokshetau-Astana pipeline is planned.


International cooperation

In general, various international organizations have played an important role in advising and assisting Kazakhstan's government in its energy sector reform and natural resource management.


Kazakhstan - the European Union

Kazakhstan signed the European Energy Charter on December 17, 1991, the nation's first day of independence from the former Soviet Union. On 4 December 2006, Kazakhstan and the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), which sets the framework for deeper energy cooperation. The memorandum establishes road maps on energy security and industrial cooperation. It was accompanied by a co-operation agreement to develop nuclear trade.EU and Kazakhstan sign agreement on closer energy ties
Interactive Investor


Kazakhstan - Russia

Kazakhstan and Russia have close cooperation on energy issues. On 3 October 2006 during the presidents' meeting in
Oral The word oral may refer to: Relating to the mouth * Relating to the mouth, the first portion of the alimentary canal that primarily receives food and liquid **Oral administration of medicines ** Oral examination (also known as an oral exam or or ...
, Kazakhstan and Russia agreed to set up a gas-condensate-processing joint venture between
Gazprom PJSC Gazprom ( rus, Газпром, , ɡɐzˈprom) is a Russian majority state-owned multinational energy corporation headquartered in the Lakhta Center in Saint Petersburg. As of 2019, with sales over $120 billion, it was ranked as the larges ...
and KazMunayGas in
Orenburg Orenburg (russian: Оренбу́рг, ), formerly known as Chkalov (1938–1957), is the administrative center of Orenburg Oblast, Russia. It lies on the Ural River, southeast of Moscow. Orenburg is also very close to the Kazakhstan-Russia bor ...
, which will be supplied from the
Karachaganak field Karachaganak Field ( kk, Қарашығанақ мұнай-газ конденсат кен орны, ''Qarashyǵanaq munaı-gaz kondensat ken orny'') is a gas condensate field about east of Aksay (Ақсай) in northwest Kazakhstan. It was onc ...
. The gas supply agreement was signed on 10 May 2007 in Astana. On 7 December 2006, the Kazakhstan's Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources
Baktykozha Izmukhambetov Baktykozha Salakhidenuly Izmukhambetov ( kk, Бақтықожа Салахиденұлы Ізмұхамбетов, ''Baqtyqoja Salahidenūly Izmūhambetov''; born 1 September 1948) is a Kazakh politician who served as the Chair of the Mazhilis from ...
and the chief of the Russian Federal Atomic Energy Agency
Sergei Kiriyenko Sergey Vladilenovich Kiriyenko (''Birth name, né'' ''Izraitel''; russian: Серге́й Владиле́нович Кирие́нко; born 26 July 1962) is a Russian politician who has served as First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidentia ...
signed an agreement, in which
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
pledged to assist Kazakhstan in its nuclear program in return for shipments of
uranium Uranium is a chemical element with the symbol U and atomic number 92. It is a silvery-grey metal in the actinide series of the periodic table. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons. Uranium is weak ...
from Kazakhstan to Russia, where the uranium will be enriched. In addition, President of Kazatomprom Moukhtar Dzhakishev, and director of Russian uranium trader
Tekhsnabexport Techsnabexport (russian: АО "Техснабэкспорт"), internationally known as TENEX, is an overseas trading company that is owned by Russian state-owned company Rosatom. Techsnabexport is an exporter of enriched uranium and a supplier o ...
Vladimir Smirnov signed a deal in which Tekhsnabexport will provide information regarding construction, transportation and logistics to help Kazakhstan develop its nuclear program. Russia already agreed earlier in 2006 to help Kazakhstan build two
nuclear power plant A nuclear power plant (NPP) is a thermal power station in which the heat source is a nuclear reactor. As is typical of thermal power stations, heat is used to generate steam that drives a steam turbine connected to a electric generator, generato ...
s. On 10 May 2007, Russia and Kazakhstan agreed to set up an international uranium enrichment center in
Angarsk Angarsk ( rus, Ангарск, p=ɐnˈgarsk) is a city and the administrative center of Angarsky District of Irkutsk Oblast, Russia, located on the Kitoy River, from Irkutsk, the administrative center of the oblast. Population: History It was ...
, East Siberia. The center is planned to come on stream in 2013. On 12 May 2007,
Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...
of Russia,
Nursultan Nazarbayev Nursultan Abishuly Nazarbayev ( kk, Нұрсұлтан Әбішұлы Назарбаев, Nūrsūltan Äbişūlı Nazarbaev, ; born 6 July 1940) is a Kazakh politician and military officer who served as the first President of Kazakhstan, in off ...
of Kazakhstan and
Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow Gurbanguly Mälikgulyýewiç Berdimuhamedow (born 29 June 1957), also known as Arkadag (Cyrillic: Аркадаг, "protector"), is a Turkmen politician who served as the second president of Turkmenistan from 2006 to 2022. A dentist by profes ...
of
Turkmenistan Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the sout ...
signed an agreement providing for Central Asian gas to be exported to Europe through the reconstructed and expanded western branch of the Central Asia-Center gas pipeline system.


Kazakhstan - Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI)

On October 17, 2013 the International Board of the
Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) is a global standard for the good governance of oil, gas and mineral resources. It seeks to address the key governance issues in the extractive sectors. The EITI Standard requires informa ...
(EITI) designate
Kazakhstan
“EITI Compliant”. Clare Short, Chair of the EITI Board said, “Kazakhstan has reached an important milestone by becoming a full member of the EITI family. I hope that all parties will now work to ensure that this increase in transparency will lead to reform in the management of the extractive industries, bringing real benefits to the people of Kazakhstan and providing leadership in other countries in the region.”


Kazakhstan - IAEA

Kazakhstan and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) cooperated on several projects related to nuclear energy, agriculture, nuclear security, research, and others. Kazakhstan contributed to such projects of the IAEA as the development of nuclear power infrastructure and strengthening nuclear forensics. Kazakhstan also provided US $100 000 in extrabudgetary contributions for the renovation of the IAEA’s nuclear applications research laboratories.


= Low Enriched Uranium Bank

=


References

{{Kazakhstan topics
Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...