Kazakhstan's wind and solar energy estimated at 1 trillion kilowatt-hours

Potential of renewable energy sources in Kazakhstan is evaluated by experts at over a trillion kilowatt-hours per year, Tengrinews.kz citing Kazakhstan Vice-Minister of Industry and New Technologies Bakhytzhan Dzhaksaliyev. “Use of such sources is only starting. The prospects of wind energy in Kazakhstan are determined by its geographic location and availability of necessary resources,” Dzhaksaliyev said. He noted that there are over 2,000 rivers in Kazakhstan, but as per the preliminary evaluation only five percent of them can be used for construction of small hydroelectric stations. Vice-Minister of Industry and New Technologies notes that Kazakhstan is located in several climatic zones where development of solar energy is possible. Dzhaksaliyev sees advantages of using renewable energy sources in causing less harm to the environment. “A law on support of renewable energy sources was adopted in 2009 to stimulate development of this sector,” Dzhaksaliyev added. The law and other regulatory acts helped eliminating organizational and financial barriers to the projects using alternative energy sources. He noted that the first stage of implementation of the hydroenergy projects is scheduled for 2012-2014. According to Dzhaksaliyev, the best perspective of development of small hydroelectric power stations is seen in East Kazakhstan Oblast and in the south of the country. Earlier Tengrinews.kz English reported that Samruk-Energo started implementation of the projects of two wind and one solar power stations in Almaty and Astana areas.