Almasadam Satkaliyev, the head of the Atomic Energy Agency, said on October 1 that the government had picked new locations for additional nuclear power plants. While the first one is poised to be built by Russia’s Rosatom near the Balkhash Lake, the second one should be built in the Zhambyl district of the Almaty region, to bridge the energy deficit gap in the southern provinces, Satkaliyev said, hinting that the contract could be assigned to China’s CNNC.
The head of the Agency also said that other, smaller nuclear plants could be built in the future in the west of the country, near the Caspian Sea shore, where the Mangistau Nuclear Power Plant used to operate, and in Kurchatov, formerly a closed city near the Semipalatinsk test site, used for nuclear experiments during the Soviet era.
Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev continued his government reshuffle on September 29. He replaced former minister of education Gani Beisembayev with former Amanat MP Zhuldyz Suleimenova. On the same day, Tokayev appointed Zhaslan Madiyev to the post of deputy Prime Minister and minister of AI - a successor to the ministry of digital development, which Madiyev already headed.
On September 29, Tokayev received a visit from Italy’s President Sergio Mattarella. Tokayev said the visit “reaffirms the special bonds of friendship and long-standing partnership” between the two countries. “We enjoy excellent relations,” Mattarella said. In 2024, trade turnover between the two countries amounted to more than $20 billion, 90% of which was related to oil and petroleum products. These numbers, however, contrast with Italian and German statistics.
Telegram founder Pavel Durov spoke about the establishment of a new research laboratory at the Digital Bridge forum in Astana on October 2. The laboratory will partner with the newly-established ministry of AI. On the sidelines of the forum, Durov also met with Tokayev.
Higgsfield AI surpassed a $1 billion valuation and became Kazakhstan’s first unicorn startup, co-founder Alex Mashrabov said on September 29. The company developed a globally-popular AI model to create videos with text prompts, images, or video.
Kazakhstan’s Financial Monitoring Agency said on September 30 that it dismantled RAKS Exchange, a cryptocurrency platform. The FMA called it “the largest crypto money laundering platform in the former Soviet space.” According to the agency, the platform’s total turnover exceeded $224 million in fiat equivalent.
Despite its efforts, Kazakhstan has been unable to meet OPEC+ quotas, the ministry of energy said on October 2. Increased domestic production has led to Kazakhstan surpassing the limit set by the organization of oil exporters. Minister Yerlan Akkenzhenov said the government will work towards meeting the quota in the next months, but is “unable to meet the compensation schedule” by which Kazakhstan would balance out its excess production this year.
Kazakhstan donated 5,000 tons of petroleum products to Tajikistan through its KazAID program, the ministry of foreign affairs reported. The deal was celebrated in Dushanbe in the presence of Kazakhstan’s ambassador and Tajik authorities. Kazakhstan has banned the export of petroleum products to ensure domestic supplies, but agreed to donate $1.65 million worth of fuel to Tajikistan.
Tighter customs controls in Russia have held up thousands of trucks transiting through Kazakhstan from China, media reported on October 1. Extra checks have slowed down transit through the Russia-Kazakhstan border since mid-September.
Spanish side Real Madrid beat FC Kairat 5:0 in the Almaty club’s first home game in the UEFA Champions League on September 28. After a balanced first half, the 14-time Champions League winners were able to capitalize on each occasion they created. French striker Kylian Mbappé scored a hat-trick.
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