"In 2019, in my election campaign, I promised that decisions on the most important strategic issues would be made through referendums. The construction or refusal to build a nuclear power plant is an extremely important issue regarding the future of our country. Therefore, I propose submitting it to a national referendum. Specific dates will be determined later," Tokayev said in his address to the nation.
The development of nuclear energy has become an important economic and political issue in Kazakhstan, although there are different opinions about the practicability of building an NPP in the country, the Kazakh president stated.
"On the one hand, Kazakhstan, as the largest uranium producer in the world, should have its own nuclear generation. Some experts support the construction of stations with small reactors. On the other hand, many citizens and a number of experts have concerns about the safety of nuclear power plants. And this is understandable," he said.
In this regard, Tokayev called for further comprehensive public discussion on this issue.
The only NPP in Kazakhstan was located in the city of Aktau with a capacity of 350 MW. It was launched in 1973 and closed in 1999. Currently, there are no nuclear stations in Kazakhstan, despite the fact that the country is the world's largest producer of uranium with a 45% share and has the second largest uranium deposits in the world.