Referendum - The Times Of Central Asia

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Kazakhstan Officially Backs Nuclear Power Referendum

The government of Kazakhstan has approved a draft resolution to hold a national referendum on constructing a nuclear power plant (NPP). The meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov, discussed the prospects for developing nuclear energy in the country. Energy Minister. Almasadam Satkaliyev noted that the referendum will allow Kazakhstanis to make an important decision about the future of the country's energy security. Bektenov emphasized that Kazakhstan has mastered almost the entire cycle of nuclear fuel production and has experience with small reactors. However, the current shortage of energy capacity requires new solutions to avoid purchasing electricity from abroad. With the global abandonment of coal-fired power plants and the limited potential of renewable energy sources, the development of nuclear power is the most promising direction. According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, 415 nuclear power units operate worldwide, and 61 new units are under construction in 15 countries, including China and the UK. With its significant uranium resource base, Kazakhstan can ensure stable electricity tariffs and independence from raw material price fluctuations. Modern NPPs have a multi-level safety system that meets IAEA international standards. According to Bektenov, nuclear power should become the basis for Kazakhstan's energy-intensive economy, stimulating innovation and industry development. The draft resolution was supported unanimously. The Ministry of Energy and the Government Office were instructed to submit a draft decree to the Presidential Administration. Talks on constructing a nuclear power plant in Kazakhstan have been ongoing for many years; the idea of the need for a nuclear power plant first appeared after the closure of the Soviet reactor in Aktau in 1999. Since then, the country has repeatedly raised questions about the development of nuclear power, especially in the context of improving energy security and climate change resilience. However, public opinion remains divided; many people in the country remember the consequences of nuclear tests at the Semipalatinsk test site and fear environmental risks. In 2021, discussions about constructing a nuclear power plant intensified when a possible site for Kazakhstan's first atomic power plant began to be considered in Almaty Oblast, near the village of Ulken. These plans sparked lively public debate and protests among residents and environmentalists. President Kassandra-Jomart Tokayev proposed a national referendum to give citizens a say on this critical issue.

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Who Will Benefit if Kazakhstan Refuses To Build Nuclear Power Plants?

Kazakhstan is facing a growing energy deficit while having large reserves of uranium which would allow the country to develop its nuclear power industry. However, so far, uranium mined in the country is used solely for export, and every year difficulties with supply chains only increase. All these problems can be solved in one elegant way, but this solution is what a part of the Kazakhstani public actively opposes. Difficulties with production and supplies Kazakhstan ranks second in the world in terms of proven reserves of natural uranium. About 14% of the world's proven reserves are concentrated in the country's subsoil. According to estimates, the country's explored reserves contain more than 700,000 tons of uranium. In 2009, Kazakhstan became the world's largest uranium producer and continues to maintain its leading position in the global market, producing approximately 40% of the world's uranium. In 2021, uranium production in Kazakhstan amounted to 21,800 tons, but by 2023 this had decreased to 21,112 tons. Moreover, due to difficulties related to the availability of sulfuric acid, the national company Kazatomprom reduced production plans for 2024. According to the initial plan, between 25,000 and 25,500 tons were to be produced; now, the plan is to produce 21,000 to 22,500 tons. Kazatomprom has also stated that if limited access to sulfuric acid continues through 2024 and the company fails to reduce the construction backlog at new sites, it could have a negative impact on production plans for 2025. Uranium mining in Kazakhstan is carried out solely by in-situ leaching, the most environmentally safe and lowest-cost method available. The Russia-Ukraine conflict could not help but affect this area of Kazakhstan's exports. This year, it became known that Kazakhstan is working on diversifying its uranium export routes, bypassing Russia. This is stated in the report on implementing the concept of development of Kazakhstan's fuel and energy complex for 2023. As part of this, Kazatomprom is working on an agreement with the Chinese companies CNUS, CNEIC, and CNNC to provide uranium transit services through China. Kazakhstan currently transports uranium products to customers in North America and Europe through the port of St. Petersburg. An alternative way is to use the Trans-Caspian international transportation route, with shipments through the ports of Aktau (Kazakhstan), Alyat (Azerbaijan), and Poti (Georgia). Nuclear deadlock Obviously, some of the concerns of Kazakhstan's leadership and Kazatomprom regarding the sale of uranium products could be alleviated by developing the country's own nuclear industry, meaning that uranium mined in the country would feed its own nuclear power plants. Talks about the need to build nuclear plants in the country have regularly been raised since the beginning of the 2000s. Kazakhstani nuclear physicists and nuclear specialists, with the persistence of a Don Quixote have periodically rush to attack the windmills of Kazakhstani radio-phobia, which, however, did not arise without reason. The Semipalatinsk Nuclear Test Site (SNTS) and the Chernobyl disaster are two significant elements of this phobia. In the early 1990s, when the SNTP was closed, the...

Nuclear Referendum

Kazakhstan’s Proposed Nuclear Power Plant: a Geopolitical Tightrope amid Environmental Concerns

Renowned for its abundant uranium reserves and expansive mining ventures, Kazakhstan is making substantial progress in the realm of nuclear power. Currently, approximately 60 nuclear reactors are under construction worldwide in 17 countries, and with more in the pipeline, demand for uranium has skyrocketed. Kazakhstan is by far the world's largest producer of nuclear fuel, mining 21,227 tons in 2022, which equates to 43% of global production. Kazatomprom, the national atomic company, is the world's largest uranium producer, with its subsidiaries, affiliates, and joint ventures developing 26 deposits. Russia, Japan, China, Canada, and France are all heavily invested, whilst international agreements exist with a plethora of other nations. Kazakhstan’s inaugural venture into the nuclear field was marked by the BN-350 fast-neutron reactor in Aktau, which ran from 1973 to 1999 before being decommissioned. Now, President Tokayev has announced a referendum will be held to decide whether to build the nation’s first fully-fledged nuclear power plant. "On the one hand, Kazakhstan, as the world's biggest uranium producer, should have its own nuclear power capacity," Tokayev stated. "On the other hand, many citizens and some experts have concerns about the safety of nuclear power plants.” The Proving Ground With Kazakhstan having endured the most contamination of all the former Soviet Republics, anything nuclear is a contentious issue. Between 1949 and 1989, the authorities executed more than 750 nuclear tests in Kazakhstan, the bulk of these, including the USSR’s first successful atomic explosion - codenamed Joe-1 - taking place in the Semipalatinsk Polygon (proving ground) in the north-east of the country. By far the hardest hit area, Semipalatinsk saw 456 tests, which affected two million people across 300 square kilometers. Eager to know what to expect in the event of a nuclear war, in 1957 the Soviets secretly opened Dispensary Number Four in Semipalatinsk. Shipping in spectators - teachers were instructed to have their pupils watch explosions - the facility observed and analyzed the effects of radiation on the populous and reported their findings back to Moscow. In this post-apocalyptic land, elevated levels of cancer, tuberculosis and mental illness persist. Today, people swim in crater lakes left by blasts which dot the steppe, though animals won’t go near the water. With all agriculture banned, a vast swathe of land still remains off-limits. Pregnancies are still screened for possible termination, with 6% of babies born “polygon.” Even in inhabited areas, Geiger counters read over 250; the normal level is just fifteen. In their headlong rush to abandon the empire upon the collapse of the USSR, the Russians left more than an undetonated payload in the mines of Semipalatinsk. As soldiers rioted over conditions and unpaid wages, upon its independence Kazakhstan inherited the fourth largest nuclear arsenal in the world. With Libya’s Colonel Gaddafi sniffing around, it was widely rumored that the Iranians, who the CIA publicly alleged to be “actively shopping,” had offered $300 million for weapons-grade uranium. Arriving in Kazakhstan post-haste, through a combination of threats, the promise of a seat at the international table...

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Turkish referendum: sending the wrong signal to Central Asia

LONDON (TCA) — It all looks like a shameful charade. But on a slightly longer term, Turkey’s referendum can be considered a step backward rather than forward and is certain to create more problems than it could possibly solve. It goes in the opposite direction of a trend emerging throughout Central Asia away from personality rule and towards a more collective form of government. While expected to have little immediate geopolitical spillover, the message sent by Turkey’s narrow majority in the direction of Central Asia is most of all psychological – and it is the wrong message. Continue reading

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Kazakhstan not to hold referendum on constitutional amendments

ASTANA (TCA) — Speaking to a working group for the constitutional reform on March 1, Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev said that he made a decision to amend the Constitution by the discussion in the Parliament, without submitting it to a referendum, the presidential press service said. Continue reading

Kyrgyzstan Election Constitution Referendum

Referendum in Kyrgyzstan backs constitutional amendments

BISHKEK (TCA) — Kyrgyzstan’s Central Election Commission said that 80 percent of voters on December 11 supported constitutional amendments aimed at shifting some presidential powers to the prime minister. Continue reading