First solar power plant in Kazakhstan gains EBRD award
The award ceremony was held as part of the bank's annual meeting in London on 12 May 2016. The award is given to projects on sustainable development which are implemented with the support of the EBRD. Burnoye Solar-1 has been recognized as the project of the year in sustainable energy.
This significant project on the use of renewable energy source was jointly funded by the EBRD and the Clean Technology Fund (CTF). The project is worth 80 million euros. The plant was built in Zhambyl region.
Burnoye Solar-1 is not only the first solar power plant in Kazakhstan but also the first private generator of renewable energy in the country. It was built in 2015 by a joint Kazakh-British enterprise LLP "Samruk-Kazyna - United Green".
Kazakhstan possesses sufficiently large potential of renewable energy resources such as wind, solar and hydro power. Nevertheless, more than 80 percent of the country's electricity is currently produced from coal-fired power plants constructed during the Soviet era. Kazakhstan's government has launched a strategic initiative called "Green Economy".
