Kazakhstan and the Global Clean Energy Transition

The clean energy transition is forging new forms of cooperation and economic ties, giving countries like Kazakhstan the opportunity to solidify a greater role on the world stage and broaden their partnerships. Kazakhstan’s position as a crossroads between Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, as well as its wealth of natural resources, have set up the country to play a role in the global transition to clean energy.

Traditionally, Kazakhstan has been an exporter of fossil fuels, with the twelfth largest oil reserves in the world. Kazakhstan has pursued a pragmatic foreign policy that has been characterized as “multi-vector” diplomacy and new geopolitical dynamics are being forged through energy diplomacy.

Kazakhstan’s energy and economic potential have attracted a suite of international investors. The country’s multilateral policy will serve it well as the world undergoes the transition to clean energy. Kazakhstan has abundant energy resources, with approximately 12 percent of the world’s uranium reserves and around 33 percent of the world’s uranium production. This, plus its critical mineral deposits, and a proliferation of wind, solar, and green hydrogen projects, has created a diverse set of resources with significant energy and economic potential. In fact, the wind potential for Kazakhstan exceeds its current energy consumption by roughly 10 percent. Furthermore, the country has announced plans to develop its solar, wind, and green hydrogen potential. Additionally, Kazakhstan’s substantial uranium mines generate tailings, which have been found to contain sizeable amounts of rare earth minerals (REEs) elsewhere, and are critical for the clean energy transition.

In 2021, Germany and Greece were Kazakhstan’s fastest-growing export markets. The EU more broadly, provided 48 percent of Kazakhstan’s total gross foreign direct investment in 2019 and has pursued a new strategic partnership over clean energy supply chains and greater economic integration. Kazakhstan’s clean energy transition will rely heavily on wind and solar energy, which creates another promising export opportunity for Kazakhstan–green hydrogen. The country plans to construct the world’s largest green hydrogen project. Kazakhstan’s role in the global clean energy transition offers an opportunity to broaden the country’s economic ties and shift regional dynamics in Central Asia.