Kazakh to Hold First Nuclear Power Plant Construction Referendum in Central Asia This Fall

Kazakhstan announced on the 27th (local time) that it will hold a national referendum this fall regarding the construction of the first nuclear power plant in Central Asia, according to AFP and other news agencies.

According to reports, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev stated at the Media Workers' Day ceremony on the 26th, "Economic development is impossible without a stable energy supply. The final decision on this matter will be made by the people."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Kazakhstan is the world's largest uranium exporter but shut down its small reactor used previously in 1999. Nuclear power is a highly complex topic in Central Asia, a region that suffered radioactive contamination from nuclear bomb tests during the Soviet era.

Foreign media suggest that if the referendum approves the establishment of the nuclear power plant, countries such as South Korea, France, China, and Russia are likely to participate in the construction of the reactor.