Turgusun hydro power plant was put into commercial operation in July 2021. Electricity generation in favor of the buyer (Financial Settlement Center of Renewable Energy LLP) for July was 2.3 mln. kWh.
Turgusun HPP commissioning provided its stable power supply for almost the entire East Kazakhstan, including other regions of the country under the Electricity Purchase Agreement with FSC. Besides the main hydro station and reservoir, they have managed to build related infrastructure during the HPP construction: access roads, power lines, bridges – which to date have significantly improved transport and information support of the region and created all conditions for the placement of energy-intensive, export-oriented enterprises. Modern engineering solutions corresponding to the latest scientific and technical achievements in the field of hydro power plant design were used in the project implementation. According to representatives of Turgusun-1 LLP, the production technology chosen uses 100% Kazakhstani raw materials – the hydroelectric potential of the River Turgusun.
“Turgusun HPP commissioning is fully in line with the development of green power industry and addresses some environmental issues in Kazakhstan, since the HPP commissioning is a considerable contribution to the environmental conservation, and in particular the reduction of greenhouse gas CO2 emissions,” noted Kalaubek Baimukhanbetov, Director of Turgusun-1 LLP.
The total cost of the project is KZT 13.39 bln., while the Development Bank has carried out the structuring of the transaction in the amount of KZT 9.6 bln. as follows: KZT 5 bln. was provided by the Development Bank in the form of long-term loan for 12 years, KZT 3.6 bln. was provided by DBK’s subsidiary – Industry Development Fund JSC – in the form of leasing for equipment acquisition, KZT 1 bln. was provided by AOM Rail BV and DBK Equity Fund – DBK’s subsidiary managed by Kazyna Capital Management JSC – in the form of loan. The remaining balance of KZT 3.8 bln. – the Borrower’s personal interest. The project is being implemented as part of the Second Five-Year Industrialization Plan.
“DBK is one of the first financial institutions in the country and the region to begin building competencies in financing renewable energy projects. We have sufficient experience in structuring green projects, and now in relation to transactions for the SPP and WPP construction, where the technical and marketing risks are considered to be low, the list of documents for expertise has been reduced, in particular excluded the external technical assessment, in order to reduce the time and material costs for both the initiators and DBK. We are glad that DBK and Turgusun-1 LLP teams, who worked on the construction of Turgusun HPP, have successfully put the HPP into operation in joint efforts, which means that the share of RES in the country’s energy balance has increased significantly,” said Duman Aubakirov, Deputy Chairman for Credit Activities of the Management Board of DBK JSC.
A total of 500 people were engaged into Turgusun HPP construction. They worked in hard-to-reach locations under extreme weather conditions. For example, the temperature in winter reached minus 42 degrees Celsius. Herewith, it is now fully automated. The permanent staff is 20 employees.
We shall note that there are three major hydro power plants in East Kazakhstan so far – Shulbinskaya, Bukhtarminskaya and Ust-Kamenogorskaya, the operation of which has proven to be highly efficient and cost-effective for power supply to the region. According to experts, the main advantages of HPP are independence from the fuel price, long life, sustainability of primary resource, low cost and ecological safety.
Development Bank of Kazakhstan JSC (DBK) is the national development institution for the modernization and development of non-raw-materials and infrastructure sectors of the economy in Kazakhstan, established in 2001. The major activities: develop industrial infrastructure and manufacturing industry, promote and attract foreign and domestic investment in the national economy. About 17.5% of the total country volume of RES are projects financed by Development Bank of Kazakhstan. To date, the Bank’s loan portfolio includes projects in all areas: wind-driven electric power station, solar energy projects and small HPP – Astana Expo-2017 wind-powered generating plant with the capacity of 100 MW in Akmola Region, solar power plant: “Zhylga” – 20 MW in Turkestan Region, “NURGISA” – 100 MW in Almaty Region, “Kaskelen” – 50 MW in Almaty Region, small hydro power plant “Turgusun-1” – 24.9 MW in East Kazakhstan.
Turgusun-1 LLP – the Partnership was established on July 10, 2012 to implement the investment project “Construction of Turgusun HPP in the Altay Region in East Kazakhstan”.
Public Relations Department of Development Bank of Kazakhstan JSC: +7 (7172) 79 26 08 (www.kdb.kz, facebook.com/kdb.kz, Twitter@KDBkz
