Kazakh authorities have estimated the possible construction cost of the first nuclear power plant (NPP) at $10-15 billion.
According to Report, citing TASS, this statement was made by Timur Zhantikin, General Director of Kazakhstan Nuclear Power Plants Co.
“At the moment, sources of financing are being worked out. These are mostly international financial organisations. The project is still being considered on a commercial basis without government interference,” he said.
In his address to the nation on 1 September, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev proposed that the issue of NPP construction be put to a national referendum. According to Tokayev, public hearings and wide-ranging discussions should be held on this issue.
Earlier, Kazakhstan’s Energy Ministry announced that the territory of Ulken village in Zhambyl district of Alma-Ata region had been selected as the most favourable site for the construction of a NPP. The authorities are now evaluating several potential suppliers of nuclear technology, including China’s CNNC, South Korea’s KHNP, Rosatom and France’s EDF.
