Subsidiary of Turkey's Ihlas Holding to build two hydropower cascades in Kyrgyzstan totaling 2,200 MWThe Kyrgyz Energy Ministry and Orta Asya Investment Holding (Central Asian Investment Holding, a subsidiary of Turkey's Ihlas Holding) have signed investment agreements to implement projects for constructing the Kazarman and Kokomeren hydropower cascades in Kyrgyzstan, with a total capacity exceeding 2,200 MW, Kyrgyz Energy Minister Taalaibek Ibrayev told journalists on Tuesday.The Kazarman hydropower cascade will have a capacity of 912 MW, while the Kokomeren cascade will reach 1,305 MW, with each cascade comprising three power stations, Ibrayev said."We highly appreciate the investor's transparency and the projects' compliance with international standards. Kyrgyzstan is entering a new stage of energy development," Ibrayev said.According to information on the Kyrgyz Energy Ministry's website, the Kazarman hydropower cascade on the Naryn river includes four hydroelectric power plants. Central Asian Investment Holding is interested in constructing three of them - the Ala-Buginskaya HPP (600 MW), the Kara-Bulungskaya-1 HPP (149 MW) and the Kara-Bulungskaya-2 HPP (163 MW). The Kokomeren river cascade includes three hydroelectric power plants: the Karakolskaya HPP (33 MW), the Kokomeren HPP-1 (360 MW) and the Kokomeren HPP-2 (912 MW).As reported on Ihlas Holding's website, Orta Asya Investment - the Turkish holding's strategic branch - signed final contracts for two hydropower projects in Kyrgyzstan, which include a 20-year operational period and guarantees for state purchases of the generated electricity. It is planned that the facilities will be launched within six years. "When the Kazarman and Kokomeren HPP projects are completed, the country's electricity generation will increase by more than half of its current capacity. The additional production volume of 8 billion kWh from the HPPs will turn Kyrgyzstan into an energy exporter," Ihlas Holding said."The projects will strengthen energy independence in Central Asia, create new bridges in energy trade, and transform the region into a crucial energy corridor between China, Pakistan, Kazakhstan and Europe," it said.According to Kyrgyz media reports, the total construction cost of the two hydropower cascades in Kyrgyzstan will be around $10 billion. To implement the projects, Orta Asya Investment Holding has signed memorandums with PowerChina International Group and Kazakhstan's SemArco LLP.Discussions about the Kazarman and Kokomeren hydropower cascade projects began in November 2024 at the summit of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) in Bishkek with the participation of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov.As reported on its website, Ihlas Group is one of Turkey's oldest and leading conglomerates, comprising 30 companies with 2,959 employees. The company operates in various sectors, including media, construction, manufacturing and distribution, healthcare and education through a number of subsidiaries. (ICE ALMATY)

Fonte notizia: INTERFAX