ASTANA – Kazakhstan plans to transform the village of Ulken on the shore of Lake Balkhash into a modern settlement for up to 33,000 residents as part of preparations for the country’s nuclear power plant projects.
Photo credit: Atomic Energy Agency. Click to see the map in full size. The map is designed by The Astana Times.
The development will include housing, schools, healthcare facilities, vocational training centers and business infrastructure, Chairman of the Atomic Energy Agency Almasadam Satkaliyev said during a Nov. 12 meeting with Kazakh specialists working at Türkiye’s Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant.
Satkaliyev stressed that the project would not create an isolated workers’ settlement but would involve the comprehensive development of the existing village, according to the agency.
“This will not be a separate workers’ settlement. It will be the development of Ulken with all the supporting infrastructure necessary for living,” he said.
The plans include residential buildings, educational and medical facilities, training and retraining centers, hotels, service businesses and opportunities for entrepreneurship. Infrastructure initially built to support nuclear power plant construction could also be repurposed for the village after construction is completed.
Ulken is also expected to incorporate modern digital solutions and develop its tourism and recreational potential, leveraging its location and natural landscape along Lake Balkhash.
Workforce and training
According to Satkaliyev, construction of one nuclear power plant could require up to 15,000 workers at its peak, including civil engineers, welders, installers, electricians and automation and quality control specialists.
Almasadam Satkaliyev meets Kazakh specialists at Türkiye’s Akkuyu NPP. Photo credit: Atomic Energy Agency
Once operational, each plant would employ approximately 2,000 people, including nuclear engineers, reactor operators and specialists in nuclear and radiation safety, maintenance and equipment repair.
To meet these requirements, Kazakhstan plans to establish a training center in Ulken and expand cooperation with domestic universities and specialized educational institutions in China and Russia.
Kazakh citizens will also have opportunities to pursue postgraduate studies and professional internships abroad through the Bolashak international scholarship program, which provides dedicated quotas for nuclear industry training.
Satkaliyev said developing Ulken would create new jobs and career opportunities, particularly for young people and added that specialists recruited for the projects would be provided housing.
Kazakhstan draws on Akkuyu experience
The announcement followed Satkaliyev’s visit to the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant construction site in Türkiye, where a Kazakh delegation reviewed construction progress, engineering operations and preparations for future plant personnel.
Representatives of Akkuyu Nuclear, led by CEO Sergey Butskikh, briefed the delegation on the four reactor units. According to the company, the first unit’s main systems have reached an advanced stage of readiness for commissioning operations. Hydraulic tests of the reactor’s primary and secondary circuits have been completed, while the second unit has had its main reactor equipment installed and welding on the main circulation pipeline completed.
Key reactor components have also been installed at the third unit, while construction and assembly work continues at the fourth. The four units are scheduled to enter operation at one-year intervals.
The delegation also visited the first unit’s control facilities, the coastal pumping station and the training center, where it reviewed the system for preparing operational personnel.
Kazakhstan seeks to build its nuclear industry
During a separate meeting with Kazakh citizens employed at Akkuyu, Satkaliyev invited them to bring their professional experience and expertise to Kazakhstan’s emerging nuclear energy sector.
He said experience gained through participation in a major international project would be valuable for both the construction and operation of nuclear power plants in Kazakhstan.
The country is working to establish a broader nuclear industry cluster encompassing uranium production, scientific research and the development of specialized expertise. Its strategy also envisages building at least three nuclear power plants.
Satkaliyev noted that plans for the first two projects in the Lake Balkhash area had become more defined, while Kazakhstan was expanding cooperation with international partners, including Russia, China, Hungary and South Korea, to strengthen workforce training and technical expertise.
The Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant, under construction in Türkiye’s Mersin Province on the Mediterranean coast, is the country’s first nuclear power plant. Developed by Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom, the project comprises four VVER-1200 reactors with a combined planned capacity of 4,800 megawatts. Kazakh specialists working at the facility are gaining experience that could contribute to Kazakhstan’s nuclear energy sector.
