Latest news with #KazakhGovernment
CNA
2 days ago
- Business
- CNA
Russia to build Kazakhstan's first nuclear power plant
ALMATY, Kazakhstan: Russian nuclear energy giant Rosatom will lead the construction of the first atomic power plant in Kazakhstan, the world's top uranium producer, the Central Asian country's authorities said on Saturday (Jun 14). "Rosatom has been named as the leader of the international consortium for the construction of the first nuclear power plant in Kazakhstan," the former Soviet republic's nuclear power agency said in a statement. Kazakhstan, a vast resource-rich country in Central Asia, is currently the world's top uranium producer, providing 43 per cent of supplies. It does not produce enough electricity to meet domestic consumption needs. The new power plant, whose construction was approved in a referendum in late 2024, will be built near the half-abandoned village of Ulken near Balkhash Lake. The lake, located in the southeast, is the country's second largest. China's National Nuclear Corporation, France's EDF and South Korea's Hydro and Nuclear Power had all bid to build the plant. In their announcement on Saturday, the Kazakh authorities said that the three companies would be included in the consortium led by Rosatom but did not provide any details. Observers say the idea of the consortium is a way for authorities to maintain good relations with all the countries involved but is unlikely to come to fruition and Rosatom will end up building the plant by itself. Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has sought to keep good relations both with former colonial power Russia and with China, which borders the country to the east and finances major infrastructure projects in the region. Rosatom has proposed financing the project and work will now begin to thresh out the details, the statement said. The announcement comes a few days before Chinese leader Xi Jinping is due to visit Kazakhstan for a "China-Central Asia" summit. Kazakhstan had nuclear power plants when it was part of the Soviet Union, in addition to hosting Soviet nuclear weapons. It was also the site for Soviet nuclear testing. After the break-up of the USSR in 1991, the new country gave up its nuclear weapons, along with other ex-Soviet states Belarus and Ukraine.
Yahoo
04-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Kazakhstan overturns $54.5m award to World Wide Minerals, extending decades-long uranium dispute
Kazakhstan has overturned a $54.5m arbitration award previously granted to World Wide Minerals, a Canadian junior miner, concerning a terminated uranium processing project. This is the second award cancellation for the company, prolonging a dispute that has spanned more than two decades. It also highlights the challenges foreign investors face in Kazakhstan's uranium industry. The dispute originates from the late 1990s when World Wide Minerals invested in Kazakhstan's uranium sector, overseeing one of the nation's largest uranium processing plants. The company reached agreements with the Kazakh Government, pledging resources to upgrade the country's uranium processing facilities. Subsequent measures taken by the Kazakh authorities, such as revoking essential licences and introducing bureaucratic obstacles, resulted in the suspension of World Wide Minerals' operations and the eventual seizure of its assets. An international arbitration tribunal found Kazakhstan in breach of international law and the Canada-USSR Bilateral Investment Treaty in October 2019. This resulted in WWM being awarded more than $40m in damages, with total compensation exceeding $50m when including legal costs. Kazakhstan contested this decision, and in November 2020, the English High Court overturned the quantum findings of the arbitral award, referring issues related to causation and the calculation of loss back to the tribunal for further review. World Wide Minerals will now have to submit an appeal to an arbitral tribunal for a third time. World Wide Minerals president and CEO Ann Marie Carroll said: 'World Wide Minerals strongly disagrees with the High Court's ruling and is deeply disappointed that the Court has again interfered with the company's decades-long efforts to obtain justice for Kazakhstan's proven violation of the relevant investment treaty. 'World Wide will continue to pursue its rights with respect to Kazakhstan's breach of international law, which has now been firmly established by an esteemed arbitral tribunal in two separate Awards.' In a related development, in January 2025, Kazakhstan national uranium producer Kazatomprom's majority-owned JV Inkai temporarily halted production at block No. 1 of the domestic Inkai uranium deposit. The suspension, effective from 1 January 2025, is in place as JV Inkai awaits approval for its revised Project for Uranium Deposit Development Documentation. "Kazakhstan overturns $54.5m award to World Wide Minerals, extending decades-long uranium dispute" was originally created and published by Mining Technology, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Sign in to access your portfolio
