The construction of Kazakhstan’s first commercial nuclear power station will not be enough to ensure stable economic growth and the country must begin planning the construction of a second and even a third facility, president Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said in his state of the nation address on 8 September.

Tokayev emphasised the importance of developing nuclear energy to secure Kazakhstan’s energy future and ensure sustainable economic growth. He said the country’s transition to low-carbon energy sources is a tool for sustainable development and the nation’s long-term interests.

But he said more nuclear plants are needed beyond the one planned in collaboration with Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom in the Zhambyl District of Kazakhstan’s Almaty Region in the southeast of the Central Asian country.