Kazakhstan plans to increase the share of renewable energy sources in the energy balance to 15% by 2030 — Alikhan Smailov
The 12th meeting of the Kazakhstan-EU dialogue platform with the participation of heads of central government agencies and representatives of the diplomatic corps was held in Astana under the chairmanship of Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Alikhan Smailov.
In his speech, the head of Government noted that the expansion of partnership with the European Union is one of the priorities of Kazakhstan. The Republic is interested in using all available opportunities for further expansion of trade, economic and investment cooperation. In particular, the promising areas here are the "green" transition and the strengthening of transport connectivity.
The Prime Minister stressed that the environmental agenda occupies one of the key places in the issues of sustainable development of the economy of Kazakhstan. Thus, by 2030, the country plans to increase the share of renewable energy sources in its energy balance from the current 4.5% to 15%.
«Taking into account the experience and achievements of European countries in alternative energy, we are interested in implementing new joint projects»,— Alikhan Smailov said.
He added that a landmark event in this direction was the Memorandum of Understanding signed last year in the field of value chains of sustainable raw materials, batteries and "green" hydrogen. At the same time, the partnership in this area is already supported by concrete steps: on June 21, a large project of Svevind company for the production of "green" hydrogen in the Mangystau region was launched.
The Prime Minister also noted that the role of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TMTM) is increasing in the field of transit and transport cooperation. Today, Kazakhstan, together with other route participants, is actively working to synchronously eliminate bottlenecks on the Middle Corridor. At the same time, the republic is ready to work together with European partners to link the Middle Corridor with the Trans-European Transport Network and the Global Gateway initiative.
«In general, Kazakhstan and the European Union have a wide range of opportunities for further deepening partnership in the fields of "green" economy, transport and logistics»,— Alikhan Smailov emphasized.
The Prime Minister also informed his European colleagues in detail about the agreements and signed agreements on the development of TMTM within the framework of his recent official visits to Azerbaijan and Georgia.
EU Ambassador to Kazakhstan Kestutis Yankauskas noted that relations between the European Union and Kazakhstan are developing very dynamically, while the implementation of new projects in the field of renewable energy sources and the strengthening of transport connectivity are among the key areas for joint work for the future.
«Climate change is a global threat. The European Union has repeatedly stated its commitment to transition to a zero-emission economy by 2050. We would also like to support Kazakhstan on this path through specific projects of our companies and banks»,— said Kastutis Jankauskas.
In addition, he highly appreciated regional initiatives to develop transport infrastructure and optimize logistics processes to increase cargo turnover along the Middle Corridor.
During the meeting, topical issues in the field of logistics and transport were discussed in detail, including the removal of administrative and infrastructure barriers, the development of renewable energy sources, the transition to environmentally friendly fuels and a number of others.
The event was also attended by the Ambassadors of Finland and Romania to Kazakhstan, representatives of Global LTD, Deutsche Bahn and Scania Central Asia LLP. The heads of central government agencies and national companies of the republic made comments on the voiced issues.