Kazakhstan seeks €17.4bn for cleaner power transition
Usagevpn.com – Kazakhstan is pursuing up to $20bn (€17.4bn) in investment to reshape an electricity system still dominated by fossil fuels, with new renewable generation, grid improvements and support for communities tied to coal all forming part of the plan.
The country’s QaJET platform, short for its just energy transition initiative, is designed to bring public and private finance together for projects that can cut emissions while helping workers and regions manage the economic consequences of change. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development is backing the platform, which is already operating and is scheduled for an official launch at COP31 in Antalya, Türkiye, in November.
Coal and other fossil fuels remain central to Kazakhstan’s power supply, accounting for roughly 85% of electricity generation. Expanding wind and solar capacity alone will not be enough: the country also needs electricity networks capable of handling more variable renewable output, as well as a transition plan for areas whose jobs and local economies rely on conventional energy.
Funding plan focuses on renewables and networks
QaJET supports Kazakhstan’s stated objective of reaching carbon neutrality by 2060. It is also linked to the country’s pledge to reduce net greenhouse-gas emissions by as much as 25% by 2030 from 1990 levels, provided international support is available.
About half of the proposed funding, or approximately €8.7bn, is intended to build 10 GW of new renewable-energy capacity by 2035. Another €4.35bn, representing a quarter of the total, is planned for measures that help integrate renewable electricity into the national system and improve supply reliability.
The final quarter would go towards transport, industrial and small-business electrification, alongside modernisation of power networks and smart-energy systems. Taken together, the platform is projected to lower annual greenhouse-gas emissions by more than 20 million tonnes. That would equal about 7% of Kazakhstan’s energy-related emissions.
The investment structure reflects a practical challenge faced by countries replacing coal-heavy generation. New clean-power projects require transmission and distribution systems that can connect them to consumers, balance changing supply and maintain dependable service. Modernising those networks can be as important as constructing new turbines or solar facilities.
Wind farm and Almaty grid work already under way
The QaJET project pipeline already contains more than €1bn in initiatives. Among the largest are the Mirny wind farm in the Zhambyl region and an upgrade of electricity infrastructure serving Almaty and nearby areas.
Mirny is expected to begin operating in 2028. The project will have 1 GW of capacity, using 150 turbines and a battery energy-storage system capable of holding 600 MWh. Developed by TotalEnergies with Kazakh partners, the wind farm is expected to produce roughly 4 TWh of renewable electricity each year.
Its electricity will be purchased by Kazakhstan’s state-owned Financial Settlement Centre for Renewable Energy through a 25-year agreement. The project is expected to prevent up to 3.5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions annually, making it a significant component of the country’s planned emissions reductions.
In Almaty, the focus is on the local distribution network rather than new generation. The EBRD is offering Alatau Zharyk Company a loan of up to 102bn tenge (€194m). The company supplies around 50,000 commercial customers across Almaty and the surrounding region.
The financing is set to support automated metering, remote-control equipment and improvements to low- and medium-voltage distribution lines. Such upgrades can give network operators better visibility over demand and faults while improving the ability of the system to accommodate changing electricity flows.
A transition shaped by workers and coal regions
Alongside the financial and technical work, Kazakhstan faces a social transition in regions where coal generation has long provided employment and supported local economies. The government and QaJET partners plan to examine which areas are most vulnerable to decarbonisation and what alternatives could create new economic opportunities.
“We are a carbon-dependent country, with large combined heat and power plants and power stations. These facilities and the energy networks need to be modernised. Workers in the energy sector also need to be retrained as part of the energy transition,” said Saule Sabieva, Climate Policy Director at the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources.
Kazakhstan is seeking international backing from the European Union, the United Kingdom, the Green Climate Fund, the Global Environment Facility and the Climate Investment Funds. External finance and technical cooperation could be particularly important for projects that combine physical infrastructure with workforce development and regional economic planning.
Sabieva highlighted Karaganda, North Kazakhstan and East Kazakhstan as regions likely to encounter some of the most difficult effects of the shift. More generally, the greatest pressures are expected in places dependent on large combined heat and power facilities and major power stations.
“We are expecting these findings. After that, we will be able to assess our major infrastructure projects and calculate their costs for inclusion in the project portfolio,” Sabieva said.
The assessment is intended to help determine which investments should enter QaJET’s portfolio and what level of funding they will require. For Kazakhstan, the transition is therefore not simply a question of replacing one source of electricity with another. It involves rebuilding networks, developing new generation, protecting reliability and preparing affected communities for a changing energy economy.
The EBRD has said Kazakhstan holds several conditions that could support faster renewable deployment, including strong natural resources and a government working to improve the regulatory environment. Whether QaJET reaches its investment target will depend on converting those conditions into a pipeline of projects that can attract long-term public and private funding.
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