Rosatom, Kazakhstan Sign EPC Contract For 2,400 MW Balkhash Nuclear Plant

Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom and Kazakhstan Nuclear Power Plants LLP (KNPP) have signed an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for the planned Balkhash Nuclear Power Plant in Kazakhstan, Rosatom said.

The plant, comprising two power units with a total capacity of 2,400 megawatts, is planned near the village of Ulken in the Zhambyl district of Kazakhstan’s Almaty region.

Rosatom First Deputy Director General for Nuclear Energy and Atomstroyexport President Andrey Petrov signed the contract on behalf of the Russian side, while KNPP Director General Ernat Berdigulov signed for Kazakhstan.

Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachev and Almasadam Satkaliev, chairman of Kazakhstan’s Agency for Atomic Energy, attended the signing ceremony.

The contract sets out the responsibilities of the Russian and Kazakh parties in the project. Rosatom will oversee the project’s implementation, including design, procurement, construction, commissioning and handover of the completed plant to KNPP.

The plant is planned to use two VVER-1200 reactors, each with an electrical capacity of 1,200 MW.

Rosatom described the reactors as Generation III+ technology and says they meet international nuclear safety requirements.

VVER-1200 reactors are operating or under construction in Russia, Egypt, Belarus, Turkey, Bangladesh, Hungary and China, according to Rosatom.

The reactors have a design service life of 60 years, with the possibility of extending it by a further 20 years, Rosatom said.

“The signed document marks a new stage in our cooperation with Kazakhstan,” Likhachev said. He added that Rosatom would carry out design work and establish an international consortium of equipment suppliers.

Site investigation work for the plant began in August 2025 and is under way, Rosatom said. More than 60 boreholes, up to 120 metres deep, have been drilled and samples collected for laboratory analysis to help determine the optimal location for the power units.

The site investigation is expected to be completed in 2027. Engineers will then prepare documentation required to obtain permits for construction of the power units, Rosatom said.

The project comes as Kazakhstan, one of the world’s largest uranium producers, seeks to develop nuclear power to diversify its energy mix and strengthen domestic electricity generation.

Across Africa, countries are also considering nuclear power as a way to meet rising electricity demand, support industrial development and improve energy security.

Several are still developing the regulatory frameworks, institutions and technical skills needed to launch nuclear programmes, while uranium-producing countries are exploring how their resources could support wider industrial development.

Egypt is further along in the process. Construction is under way at the four-unit El-Dabaa Nuclear Power Plant, which has a planned total capacity of 4,800 MW. Once completed, the plant is expected to generate about 37 billion kWh of electricity a year and provide around 10% of Egypt’s electricity needs.

For African uranium producers at an earlier stage of nuclear development, Kazakhstan provides an example of how a country can seek to connect uranium production with domestic nuclear power generation, skills development and supporting infrastructure.