Kazakhstan mulls power JV with Russia’s Inter RAO for mining firms

ALMATY, Nov 8 (PRIME) -- Kazakh state company Samruk Energy is discussing creation of a joint venture with Russian power holding Inter RAO to export power to Kazakhstan and cover higher demand stemming from a boom of cryptocurrency mining, Aidos Daribayev, director of the power sector development of the Kazakh Energy Ministry, said on November 5.

“We understand that power generation is not built in one day, it would take at least five years. This is why Samruk Energy has started negotiations with Inter RAO on power supplies to the Republic of Kazakhstan,” he said in a news briefing.

The negotiations to create a joint venture that would deliver power to the new cryptocurrency mining ventures, he said.

First Deputy Energy Minister Murat Zhurebekov said that crossflows of capacities from Russia help Kazakhstan cope with the current increase in power consumption.

In October, Kazakh power grid operator KEGOC said that malfunctions on the power plants and a rapid increase in power consumption by cryptocurrency miners pushed demand above supply.

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