Suppliers shortlisted for Kazakh nuclear power plant

Friday, 11 April 2025

"The shortlist of potential suppliers of reactor technologies has been formed," Interfax reported, citing a statement from the Kazakh Atomic Energy Agency. "The list includes the Russian state corporation Rosatom alongside Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP), France's EDF and China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC)."

The statement added: "The final decision on the choice of a supplier or consortium for the implementation of the project will be made at a meeting of the Interdepartmental Commission, taking into account the national interests of the country."

The four technology suppliers have been in discussions over the past months with the Kazakh Ministry of Energy, with CNNC offering its HPR-1000 (Hualong One) design, EDF its EPR1200, KHNP its APR-1000/APR-1400 and Rosatom offering its VVER-1200.

Intergovernmental agreements and contracts needed for the project are expected to be signed in November this year, Interfax said.

The Kazakh government in late December formally selected the Zhambyl district of Almaty region as the location for its proposed nuclear power plant.

Last month, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev appointed Almassadam Satkaliyev to head the new state body - the Agency of the Republic of Kazakhstan for Atomic Energy - which took over various functions and powers from the country's Ministry of Energy.

Background
 

Kazakhstan is the world's leading producer of uranium. Although it does not currently use nuclear energy, it is not without nuclear experience: it has three operating research reactors, and a Russian-designed BN-350 sodium-cooled fast reactor operated near Aktau for 26 years, until 1999.

Kazakhstan has been preparing for a possible nuclear power programme to reduce its reliance on fossil fuels, diversify its energy mix and reduce CO2 emissions for some time. Kazakhstan Nuclear Power Plant (KNPP), a subsidiary of Kazakhstan's Samruk-Kazyna National Welfare Fund JSC, was set up in 2014. As well as being designated as the owner/operator of a future plant, KNPP is tasked with pre-project work including a feasibility study to justify the need for nuclear power - carried out in 2018 - and locating a site.

The proposed first nuclear power plant would be a large reactor but there are also options for using small modular reactors to replace retiring coal plants in the years to come and a second large plant is being considered with the government's target being for nuclear to produce a 5% share of the national generation mix by 2035.