As of October 2024, Kazakhstan imported 1.574 billion kWh of electricity from Russia, according to the Ministry of Energy of Kazakhstan. The peak supply occurred during the summer months, particularly in August.
The distribution of imports was as follows:
- January: 53.2 million kWh
- February: 76.6 million kWh
- March: 45.2 million kWh
- April: 44.2 million kWh
- May: 56.1 million kWh
- June: 269 million kWh
- July: 237.8 million kWh
- August: 383.9 million kWh
- September: 242.8 million kWh
- October: 165.6 million kWh
"Electricity imports depend on various factors, including the planned maintenance of domestic power plants. It is important to note that imported electricity is procured by a single buyer solely to address local power shortages," stated the ministry.
Previously, Kazakhstan's National Statistics Bureau reported that in the first nine months of 2024, the country imported 3 billion kWh of electricity from Russia, a 17.3% decrease compared to the same period in 2023, and 98.2 million kWh from Kyrgyzstan, an increase of 1.6 times. Overall, electricity imports decreased by 16%, but in monetary terms, they rose by 16.2% to $204 million.
At the same time, electricity prices for Kazakhstani consumers increased by more than 20%. Trade and Integration Minister Arman Shakkaliev explained that the price hike was not due to higher electricity consumption but to increased tariffs. He also noted that the country did not consume more electricity as a result of the time zone change.
In August, the Russian power generation company Inter RAO reported that Kazakhstan was the largest importer of Russian electricity in the first half of the year. During that period, Kazakhstan purchased 1.6 billion kWh of electricity, accounting for almost half of *Inter RAO*'s total export volume.
CentralasianLIGHT.org,
November 22, 2024