BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 15. Kazakhstan has several competitive advantages for developing the digital mining industry, including a clear regulatory framework, government support and a technical workforce, President of the Blockchain and Digital Mining Association Daniyar Mubarakov said at a government meeting.
This was announced by the press service of the Kazakh government.
He noted that Kazakhstan was among the first countries to establish clear and transparent regulation of digital mining. The country has a specialized regulator, maintains dialogue with the industry and has a legislative framework under the Law on Digital Assets.
Kazakhstan also has a technical education system that trains specialists to work with data centers, Mubarakov said.
According to him, international experience shows that digital mining can contribute to the development of energy and computing infrastructure. In the US, the industry contributes more than $4.1 billion to the economy annually and creates over 31,000 jobs. Mining companies also participate in balancing power systems, invest in energy infrastructure and develop data centers that can later be used for artificial intelligence applications.
At the same time, Kazakhstan's mining industry faces high electricity costs when purchasing power from the Single Buyer, while surplus capacity is available only during certain hours of the day.
Investors consider electricity costs, power supply stability, the quality of the legal and tax framework and the government's long-term strategy when selecting sites, Mubarakov said. Kazakhstan is implementing measures to support a new model for the industry, including the creation of a crypto reserve, the development of strategic mining and the 70/30 Program for modernizing power plants.
He noted that to further strengthen the industry's position, representatives propose improving the 70/30 Program, increasing the use of associated gas for power generation, revising approaches to electricity capacity allocation and the tax burden on mining, and developing a national digital mining strategy.
These measures could improve the industry's investment attractiveness, increase the efficiency of energy resources and support the development of computing infrastructure for applications including artificial intelligence.
