The event of fresh power has turn into a precedence for a lot of the world as a result of continued impacts of local weather change. One important consequence of local weather change is the rising depth and frequency of wildfires, as seen within the latest devastating California wildfires, together with extra extreme storms and extended droughts.
Central Asia has been significantly vulnerable to those results, grappling with water shortage and excessive climate patterns. Glaciers are retreating at an alarming fee, feeding rivers that now battle to maintain rising populations. Farmers in Kazakhstan are confronted with challenges as once-reliable water sources dwindle, their crops withering beneath frequent droughts in the summertime. Excessive climate – as soon as an exception – has turn into the brand new regular. In April 2024, whole villages in northern Kazakhstan have been submerged as unprecedented floods swept throughout the area.
These environmental shifts are disrupting meals manufacturing and placing livelihoods in danger. For many years, the nation’s reliance on fossil fuels appeared unshakable. However now, confronted with local weather disasters at dwelling, Kazakhstan is accepting clear power as a necessity, not simply an ambition.
Local weather Change Is Forcing Renewable Vitality Growth
In December of final yr, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev noted on the One Water Summit in Riyadh that over 2 billion folks worldwide lack entry to protected ingesting water, with greater than 4 billion experiencing extreme water shortage. To deal with these challenges, he introduced Kazakhstan’s plan to host a regional local weather convention in 2026, in partnership with the United Nations, to drive cooperation and options for water administration in Central Asia.
Alongside this, Kazakhstan has begun reshaping its power panorama, making investments in clear power to mitigate environmental dangers. By the tip of 2024, Kazakhstan had built a community of 148 renewable power amenities, producing practically 3,000 megawatts of fresh energy. Wind generators now dot the skyline throughout 59 wind farms, whereas 46 photo voltaic crops make the most of the area’s considerable daylight. Hydroelectric stations and biomass crops additional diversify the combo. But, regardless of these strides, renewables nonetheless account for simply 5 % of Kazakhstan’s power provide – a determine the federal government is set to spice up. The purpose is for renewables to achieve 15 % of the power combine by 2030 and 50 % by 2050.
However can a rustic so deeply tied to coal and oil actually remodel its economic system? And can worldwide buyers stay dedicated in the long term?
For now, the indicators are promising. A $1.4 billion wind energy station, spearheaded by the UAE’s Masdar, is about to inject 1 gigawatt (GW) of fresh power into Kazakhstan’s grid. French power large TotalEnergies has dedicated to a similar-scale wind farm. And in a transfer that might supercharge home clear power manufacturing, Envision Vitality, a worldwide chief in inexperienced expertise, has broken ground on a brand new wind turbine and power storage manufacturing facility in Khorgos.
Talking on the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week Summit on January 14, Tokayev, stated that “it is vitally a lot essential that worldwide companions together with Masdar, Complete, Eni and others have pledged 43 GW of inexperienced power tasks in Kazakhstan.” However whether or not these investments translate into long-term power transformation would be the final take a look at within the coming years.
Tokayev has additionally framed the development of Kazakhstan’s first nuclear energy plant – authorized by a nationwide referendum – as a game-changer within the nation’s push for sustainable power. With coal nonetheless producing over 60 % of Kazakhstan’s electrical energy, the shift towards nuclear energy generally is a departure from the previous. In keeping with the proponents of nuclear power, not like wind and photo voltaic, which rely upon nature, nuclear power supplies a steady, carbon-free energy supply. If realized, the nuclear energy plant will help Kazakhstan meet its carbon neutrality goal by 2060. Nonetheless, the undertaking’s success hinges on securing worldwide funding, attracting top-tier experience, and – maybe most crucially – profitable public belief.
Want for Worldwide Cooperation
Kazakhstan’s clear power transition requires exterior help. Ultimately yr’s COP29 in Baku, Kazakhstan secured roughly $3.7 billion in agreements with worldwide corporations and growth establishments to advance inexperienced power tasks. Europe has emerged as a key ally right here. Kazakhstan and the European Union formalized a Strategic Partnership on Uncooked Supplies, Batteries, and Renewable Hydrogen – a deal designed to create sustainable provide chains and drive ahead inexperienced expertise innovation. To help this, Kazakhstan is ramping up exploration of important minerals like lithium, cobalt, and nickel, aligning itself with the worldwide push for electrification and clear power storage.
Germany has additionally doubled down on its power ties with Kazakhstan. Throughout his 2024 go to, Chancellor Olaf Scholz secured recent agreements specializing in renewable power growth and important minerals – important for Europe’s transition away from fossil fuels.
The nuclear power query is drawing worldwide consideration, too. In November 2024, Tokayev met with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris. France, with its lengthy historical past in nuclear power, might play a key position in serving to Kazakhstan construct its first-ever nuclear energy plant. However that is unlikely to be a solo effort. Kazakhstan is considering the formation of a global consortium, doubtlessly involving Russia, China, and different international gamers, to make sure a various pool of experience and expertise.
Nearer to dwelling, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and Uzbekistan signed a Strategic Partnership Settlement final November on inexperienced power growth and electrical energy transmission. This pact is designed to strengthen Central Asia’s power safety and create a extra interconnected energy market.
The problem now’s guaranteeing these collaborations translate into lasting, tangible progress.
Can Kazakhstan Overcome the Fossil Gas Entice?
Kazakhstan has made progress in clear power, however the actuality is that fossil fuels nonetheless dominate the nation’s energy grid. Breaking free from this dependency will contain navigating the social and financial modifications that include transitioning away from coal and oil. Whole industries, jobs, and communities are constructed round these assets, and shifting to a greener economic system would require daring insurance policies and powerful management.
The stakes are excessive. Local weather change is now not a distant risk, and Kazakhstan is feeling its results. The devastating floods of 2024 and the area’s worsening water shortages are forcing the nation to rethink its power future. The deliberate building of its first nuclear energy plant, together with increasing renewable power tasks, sign that the nation is critical about its plans. Nonetheless, reaching carbon neutrality by 2060 won’t be simple for Kazakhstan, significantly on the subject of diversifying its economic system and lowering its reliance on oil revenues. However, if Kazakhstan can efficiently harness worldwide funding, technological experience, and regional cooperation, it might set a precedent for energy-rich nations navigating the clear power transition.
