ADB to study early coal retirement in Kazakhstan

This will be accomplished through the bank’s energy transition mechanism program. 

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is studying opportunities to speed up the retirement of coal-fired power plants in Kazakhstan through the Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM) programme. 

“As Asia and the Pacific’s climate bank, we are pleased to support the government’s commitment to fulfilling its nationally determined contributions under the Paris Agreement and achieving carbon neutrality by 2060,” ADB Director General for Central and West Asia Yevgeniy Zhukov said. 

“ETM could help to significantly reduce the country’s GHG emissions, ramp up much-needed clean energy investments, and expand access to reliable, sustainable energy.”

Read more: Kazakhstan could miss its revised 2030 renewables target

ADB has conducted a pre-feasibility study in the country, following the request of the Ministry of Energy of Kazakhstan. The study is intended to help identify which coal-fired power plants and combined heat power plants can be retired early. 

ADB has so far provided a $225,000 grant for the study, which will also analyse the current policy and regulatory environment in the Central Asian nation.