Kazakhstan's largest copper- and power-producer, Kazakhmys PLC, said Friday that
it has signed an agreement with one of Russia's
largest power generating companies, JSC RusHydro, to establish a Kazakhstan hydropower generation joint venture.
Kazakhstan is growing at a fast clip and needs more electricity to sustain
its economic growth. The International Monetary Fund forecasts Kazakhstan's real gross domestic product will grow 5.9% in 2012 and then 6%
in 2013, according to data found on the IMF's website.
The joint venture would focus on the development of small hydro-electric plants
in Kazakhstan with a total capacity of up to 300 megawatts. Up to 30% of the
possible project costs will come from Kazakhmys and RusHydro, with the balance
coming from external project finance, Kazakhmys said.
"Currently just 10% of Kazakhstan's power is generated from hydro plants with nearly 90% coming
from coal-fired stations," Oleg Novachuk, Kazakhmys's chief executive,
said in a statement. "As the largest producer of power in Kazakhstan, Kazakhmys is ideally placed to promote the development of
renewable energy and we believe that small hydroelectric plants may have a key
role in the growth of the sector."
U.K.-listed Kazakhmys owns 50% of the coal-fired Ekibastuz GRES-1 plant, the
largest in Kazakhstan. The plant has a power generation capacity of 2,500 MW and is
undergoing a modernization program to reach its nameplate capacity of 4,000 MW.
Kazakhmys also operates captive coal mines and power stations which supply
power to its mining division.