The first deputy prime minister noted that, in all likelihood, a consortium will be created for the project.
Possible political risks during the construction of a nuclear power plant (NPP) in Kazakhstan will be provided for in contracts with companies, the First Deputy Prime Minister said at a briefing in the government. Roman Sklyar, the correspondent reports Total.kz .
“In all likelihood, it will be a consortium, because safety is above all else. We are interested in the newest station to be built, so that the latest design solutions and technologies from manufacturing countries that are leaders in their field can be applied there. This will be handled by a special project team. And possible political risks will be considered as they arise during the design process. If there are any, the so—called sanctions clause will be provided for in contracts with various companies, with various countries,” Roman Sklyar explained.
However, he clarified that, most likely, the consortium will consist of no more than 5 countries. According to him, the consortium is necessary, as the NPP is not just one facility, which consists of a number of facilities.
“Therefore, the task is to carry out such work when designing, when we take the best technologies from different countries. Accordingly, various subcontractor companies for the construction of this station will participate,” said the first deputy prime Minister.
He assured that there is already such a global experience, because one country can make a nuclear island, another can make a turbine, a third country can make indoor or indoor switchgear, and so on.
“Combined, all this will have a good effect. Therefore, we should not focus on a single supplier, a single contractor. And to create a consortium that, as practice shows, works most effectively. Next year, there will be more clarity on this issue — who will be a member of this consortium, when this documentation will be developed, when a decision will be made on the contractor, the designer.… The responsibility is huge, because the safety of nuclear power plants is above all else. Of course, the CHP plant and any facility that we operate should be safe, but the NPP has a special priority on safety, so it will take place within such a time frame. We do not yet know the answer to this question, which companies will be from which countries,” Sklyar concluded.
As previously reported, the initiative to hold a referendum was put forward by the President of Kazakhstan in a message to the people of the country in September 2023. He noted that Kazakhstan, as the largest producer of uranium in the world, should have its own nuclear generation, and suggested a comprehensive and broad discussion of this issue. After that, during the year, government officials met with the population in all regions of the country to discuss plans for the construction of a nuclear power plant.
This year, during his address, the head of state announced that a referendum on the construction of a nuclear power plant would be held on October 6. Today, the Central Commission of the Referendum has established the results of the republican referendum. According to the data obtained, the total number of Kazakh citizens eligible to participate in the referendum amounted to 12 million 284 thousand 487 people. The number of citizens who took part in the voting amounted to 7 million 820 thousand 204 people, or 63.66% of the number of citizens eligible to participate in the referendum. The number of citizens who voted for a positive solution to the issue put to the referendum amounted to 5 million 561 thousand 937 people, or 71.12%. Thus, the referendum is considered to have taken place.
