Kazakhstan to Build Its First Nuclear Plant: $16.5 Billion EPC Deal With Rosatom
On 3 September 2026, Rosatom and KNPP signed an EPC contract for Kazakhstan's first nuclear plant. Two VVER-1200 units (2,400 MW) will be built on Lake Balkhash; Russia will finance ~85%.
On 3 September 2026, on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom (via subsidiary Atomstroyexport) and Kazakhstan Nuclear Power Plants (KNPP) signed an EPC (engineering, procurement, construction) contract for Kazakhstan's first nuclear power plant.
Where and how
The plant will be built near the village of Ulken in Zhambyl district, Almaty Region, on Lake Balkhash. It will feature two Generation III+ VVER-1200 reactors with a combined capacity of 2,400 MW. Rosatom leads an international consortium responsible for the full build cycle.
Cost and financing
Per sources, the estimated cost is ~$16.4–16.5 billion (about $14.4bn for the two units and ~$2bn for physical security and social infrastructure). Russia is expected to finance around 85% via a state export loan on “very favourable terms”; Kazakhstan's atomic energy chief Almasadam Satkaliyev said in May the terms were “very favourable for Kazakhstan.”
Timeline
Construction is targeted to start in 2027; the first unit is expected around 2034 per World Nuclear News, with full completion in 2035–2036 (sources differ slightly on the first-unit/completion dates — WNN cites 2034, TASS/officials 2035–2036).
Why it's being built
The plant was approved in a 2024 national referendum, and an intergovernmental agreement was signed in May 2026. The rationale cited is an electricity deficit: per Times of Central Asia, the shortfall reached about 5.7 billion kWh in January 2025.
Russia dependence and the China factor
The deal deepens Kazakhstan's energy dependence on Russia. At the same time, Astana is in talks with China's CNNC for a second and third plant — read as an attempt to diversify suppliers.
The signed document marks a new stage in our cooperation with Kazakhstan.
— Alexei Likhachev, Director General of Rosatom (Vladivostok, 3 September 2026)
By the numbers
- Reactors: 2 × VVER-1200 (Gen III+), 2,400 MW
- Estimated cost: ~$16.4–16.5bn
- Russian financing: ~85% (export loan)
- Construction start: 2027
- First unit: ~2034 (full: ~2035–2036)
- Location: Ulken, Lake Balkhash, Almaty Region
- Electricity deficit (Jan 2025): ~5.7bn kWh
- Plants 2 & 3: in talks with China (CNNC)
- Referendum: 2024 (approved)
