Six universities in Kazakhstan are currently training personnel for the nuclear and atomic industries. According to Gulzhan Dzharasova, Deputy Chairman of the Committee of Higher and Postgraduate Education at the Ministry of Science, approximately 1,000 students are pursuing engineering degrees related to the nuclear sector.
Kazakhstan’s decision to build its first nuclear power plant (NPP) was made last fall following a referendum, in which more than 70% of the population voted in favor of nuclear energy. The first plant is set to be built in the Almaty region and is expected to be operational by 2035, as the country anticipates an energy shortage by that time. The plant will require a workforce of at least 2,000 employees, and the Ministry of Energy aims to train specialists domestically to meet this demand.
To support this initiative, local colleges will introduce training programs for key technical roles, including dosimetrists, steam turbine equipment repair specialists, nuclear power plant maintenance and mechanical repair specialists, and IT professionals specializing in nuclear energy. Currently, 921 students are enrolled in nuclear engineering programs at Kazakhstan’s higher education institutions, with nearly all (96%) receiving government-funded scholarships.
“As part of a strategic partnership in this field, branches of leading foreign universities are being established. The National Research Nuclear University has been created at the Kazakh National University (KazNU). Additionally, a consortium of German technical universities has launched a new training format for engineers in the electric power industry. In 2024, a branch of Anhalt University opened at the Almaty University of Power Engineering and Communications, where specialists in electrical and power engineering are being trained,” Dzharasova said.
Kazakhstan’s Growing Need for Nuclear Energy Experts
Kazakhstan’s Minister of Energy, Almasadam Satkaliyev, addressed concerns about the demand for nuclear energy specialists. He stated that the country will need at least three nuclear power plants, which would require a workforce of 5,000 to 6,000 trained professionals.
“The sites for all three plants will be selected based on a comprehensive plan. It is not feasible to plan one station first and then another separately. We must first analyze the network configuration, power distribution schemes, cross-border energy flows, grid voltage levels, the necessary number of substations, and the feasibility of using direct current (DC) technology for long-distance transmission,” Satkaliyev explained.
Accelerating Nuclear Power Plant Construction
At a recent briefing, Satkaliyev also stated that the first nuclear power plant unit in Kazakhstan could be completed within eight years.
“Even considering the average global timeline for such projects, we will push vendors to explore the possibility of expediting construction so that we can have the first unit operational within eight years,” he said.
The Times of Central Asia previously reported that Kazakhstan plans to select a contractor for the construction of its first nuclear power plant in the first half of this year.
