ASTANA, Kazakhstan, July 8. The Russian state corporation Rosatom, chosen as the leader of the consortium to build Kazakhstan’s first nuclear power plant, will take on the task of preparing personnel for its future operation, Trend reports via the country’s Atomic Energy Agency.
About 2,000 specialists will be needed to work at the new nuclear power plant. Of these, 400 people must be trained in nuclear specialties, while the remaining 1,600 will be profile-technical staff similar to those working at Kazakhstan’s existing coal and gas power plants.
The agency clarified that training of future employees is already underway through 18 educational programs. This work is organized based on Kazakhstani higher education institutions and is also conducted in cooperation with foreign educational centers specializing in nuclear technologies.
The decision to build Kazakhstan’s first nuclear power plant was approved in a referendum in 2024. In mid-2025, it became known that among the four contenders - Russia’s Rosatom, China’s CNNC, France’s EDF, and South Korea’s KHNP - the Russian corporation offered the most optimal conditions and was appointed head of the consortium. The Kazakh authorities initially considered involving more than one foreign company, given the number of interested parties.
The plant is planned to be located in the Almaty region, with its commissioning scheduled for 2035–2036. According to the chief of Kazakhstan’s Atomic Energy Agency, Almassadam Satkaliev, the project implementation will take approximately seven years. The construction of the plant is expected to be regulated by an intergovernmental agreement with Russia, which Astana hopes to conclude by the end of the current year.
The total cost of the project is estimated at $14 billion. Financing will be provided through an export loan granted by the Russian Federation on preferential terms. The loan funds will be used to purchase key equipment for the plant, including the reactor, steam generators, and pumps. The exact terms of the loan agreement are currently under negotiation.
