Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan to cooperate on building solar power plant

Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan have started implementing a joint project to build the first solar power plant in the Kyrgyz Republic with the participation of 100 percent Kazakh investment, Turanews.kz reports citing Inform.kz.

Kyrgyzstan has a high potential of renewable energy sources, the main types of which are hydropower, solar energy, wind and biomass energy.

One of the projects for the use of renewable energy sources is the solar power plant in the village of Toru-Aigyr, Issykkol region where made an invesment by Kazakhstani businessmen.

At the end of December 2022, Kazakhstan private company TGS-Energy Limited, a subsidiary of the “TechnoGroupService” group of companies, and the 9th energy holding of the Kyrgyz Republic, a subsidiary of “TazaEnergy” LLP, on the construction of the “Toru-Aigyr” solar power plant, “Kun Bulagy” LLP – signed a charter document on the establishment of a Kyrgyz-Kazakh joint venture.

According to “TGS-Energy”, the goal of the project is to increase the production of electricity in order to reduce its shortage in the context of the growth of electricity consumption in Kyrgyzstan, as well as to increase the production of electricity from renewable energy sources.

The main contractor for the construction of the solar power plant is “TGS-Construction” LLP.

At the moment, the project is in the initial stage of implementation, land plots have been allocated for the construction of the solar power plant, technical conditions for connection to the public grid have been developed, and design and research work is being carried out.

Iskender Beyshenaliev, director of Kyrgyz company “TazaEnergy”, noted that the project of building a solar power station is strategic, as well as the first and largest project in the history of Kyrgyzstan.

“This project makes it possible to realize the potential of Kyrgyzstan’s RES and provide the Issykkol region with an environmentally friendly energy source that does not require high-tech processes. “Today, most of the collection of relevant documents has been carried out, the process of land transformation is underway, and it is expected to be completed by the end of February this year,” he added.

The total capacity of the project is 300 MW with a cost of about 200 million USD. The first phase of construction with a capacity of 50 MW is estimated at 34.3 million US dollars.

Among them, 20% of the project cost will be contributed by “TGS-Energy”, the remaining financing will be carried out by attracting a bank loan.

In the case of proper maintenance of the HPP, its service life exceeds 20 years. The construction of the first phase is expected to be completed by the end of 2023.

Compared to traditional energy sources, the introduction and use of RES in Kyrgyzstan allows to reduce the energy deficit and develop remote areas of the country, as well as to significantly reduce the level of environmental damage.

This large-scale project opens up new opportunities for bilateral cooperation in the field of “green” energy between Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, and allows the two countries to jointly solve energy supply problems, taking into account high environmental standards.