Space Days Kazakhstan Highlights Push Beyond Baikonur

Kazakhstan is home to Baikonur, the cosmodrome from which the Space Age began, but the country has spent three decades trying to turn that Soviet inheritance into a space sector of its own. At Space Days Kazakhstan, held on September 7–9 in Astana and Baikonur, Kazakhstan presented new satellite projects and plans for international cooperation. A day later, talks with China were announced on a separate five-satellite network for Central Asia. By 2030, Astana plans to assemble an international constellation of nine Earth-observation satellites, six of them Kazakh. The country is also upgrading its national satellite communications system, developing new Earth-observation spacecraft at home, and expanding cooperation with China and other partners. Kazakhstan still relies heavily on Russia at Baikonur, and many of its newer projects depend on foreign technology and cooperation. Nevertheless, Astana is seeking greater control over the infrastructure and spacecraft on its own territory while widening the number of countries it works with. Taking More Control at Baikonur One of the clearest examples of Kazakhstan’s attempt to gain more control over its space sector is Baiterek, a joint project with Russia that dates back to 2004. The original agreement called for a new launch complex at Baikonur. But the project spent much of the next two decades being redesigned as Russia changed the rocket it planned to use. Baiterek was first intended for the Angara rocket, then Zenit, and finally Soyuz-5, known in Kazakhstan as Sunkar. Each change brought further delays. After launch targets in 2023, 2024, and 2025 slipped, Soyuz-5 finally lifted off from Baikonur on April 30, 2026. The rocket carried a dummy payload on the first flight in the test program. The launch mattered less for what it carried than for what it represented. Kazakhstan now operates the launch pad and ground infrastructure used by Baiterek, giving it a larger role at a cosmodrome long dominated by Russia. But Russia still builds the rocket. That reflects the wider relationship at Baikonur. The cosmodrome remained on Kazakh territory after the collapse of the Soviet Union, but Russia leases it through 2050 for $115 million a year and continues to use it for its human spaceflight program. In July 2026, Baikonur was again used for an international mission to the ISS. Kazakhstan is therefore not replacing Russia at Baikonur. It is trying to take a larger role in a space complex where Russia remains deeply embedded. But launch infrastructure is only one part of Kazakhstan’s attempt to develop capabilities of its own. Increasingly, the focus is on satellites. Building Satellites at Home KazSat is the country’s national satellite communications and broadcasting system. KazSat-3 currently provides data transmission, television, and other communications services. Its planned operating life ends in late 2029. KazSat-3R is being developed as its replacement. The national operator, the Republican Center for Space Communication, invited more than 40 spacecraft manufacturers to participate in the selection process. Fourteen companies responded: two from Kazakhstan and twelve from abroad. The operator plans to cover more than half...

Kazakhstan Allocates More Than $22 Million for New Communications Satellite

Kazakhstan has begun upgrading its national satellite infrastructure by financing the development of a new communications satellite, KazSat-3R, which is expected to replace the existing KazSat-3 by the end of the decade. The government is also working to expand the country’s Earth-observation satellite network and develop domestic manufacturing capacity. It is also preparing for commercial launches from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. The government has allocated approximately $22.3 million from its reserve for the KazSat-3R project. The new satellite will replace KazSat-3, whose planned service life expires in 2029. Kazakhstan’s national satellite communications system currently consists of two satellites, KazSat-2 and KazSat-3, as well as two ground control centers, Akkol and Kokterek. The system provides television and radio broadcasting, data transmission, telephone services, and internet access across Kazakhstan, Central Asia, and parts of Russia. KazSat-3’s approaching retirement is one reason for its replacement. In 2023, a power-system malfunction temporarily took the satellite out of service, disrupting satellite television broadcasts and exposing Kazakhstan’s dependence on its own orbital infrastructure. In May 2025, Senator Andrey Lukin, chair of the Senate Committee on International Relations, Defense and Security, previously said KazSat-3R could require 40.2 billion tenge, approximately $86 million, in state financing. He also warned that public procurement rules could restrict the participation of foreign satellite manufacturers and called for the project to be handled under a special procedure. The KazSat system is used by 19 telecommunications operators and provides television services to more than two million subscribers, the government said. It supports television and radio broadcasting, as well as data transmission. The system also provides mobile communications and internet access, particularly in remote areas where building ground-based infrastructure is difficult. Government figures indicate that 99% of Kazakhstan’s population has access to high-speed internet. The country’s population stood at 20,5 million on June 1, 2026, the Bureau of National Statistics reported. The new communications satellite is one element of Kazakhstan’s national space program. The country plans to launch three KazEOSat-MR Earth-observation satellites in 2027 to replace KazEOSat-2. Three more satellites are planned for 2029–2030, which would bring the constellation to six. Kazakhstan is also developing its own launch infrastructure. The Baiterek project, implemented with Russia, has modernized a launch complex at the Baikonur Cosmodrome for the Soyuz-5 launch vehicle. The first test launch took place successfully on April 30, 2026. The government said the test confirmed the complex’s operational readiness. The cost of a commercial Soyuz-5 launch is estimated at between $50 million and $60 million, depending on the rocket configuration and upper stage. By comparison, a commercial launch of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 is priced at approximately $67 million. Kazakh authorities expect this cost structure to allow the project to compete in the international launch-services market. Kazakhstan is also considering satellite exports as a potential area of commercial growth. Domestic companies are exploring projects to manufacture satellites for the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mongolia, and Nigeria, with a combined potential value estimated at approximately $75 million. As previously reported by The Times of Central Asia,...