ASTANA, Kazakhstan, December 8. Almost 100 percent of the population of the Atyrau region of Kazakhstan is provided with gas, said the head of the region Serik Shapkenov, Trend reports.
"Gas is now available in two cities and 137 rural settlements throughout the Atyrau region." That is, the majority of the population has access to gas," he explained.
According to him, gas pipeline development is now underway in six villages.
"In this regard, it is now planned to build a main gas pipeline with a length of 46.8 km and the construction of a new gas distribution station," the minister added.
As the region's governor highlighted, this will provide a steady supply of gas to residents of cities and suburban towns, where more than 160,000 people live.
"Another major project is the Makat-North Caucasus gas pipeline. The cost is 99.8 billion tenge (about $217.7 million). The project was financed by QazaqGaz JSC (Kazakhstan's national company). This will ensure stable gas supply to residents of the Atyrau region and the city of Atyrau. We're talking about looping. 130 kilometers of additional gas pipelines were laid," Shapkenov said.
The implementation of this project will help meet the region's demand for gas and ensure an uninterrupted supply of gas to participants in the special economic zone.
In general, at the end of 2022, the level of gas supply to Kazakhstan was 59 percent. 142 gas projects worth 96.1 billion tenge (about 201.4 million) were implemented in the regions, which made it possible to provide access to natural gas to 285,000 citizens in 107 rural settlements.
In 2023, it is planned to increase the share of gas supply to the population to 60 percent with the implementation of 86 projects for a total budget investment of 74 billion tenge (about $155.1 million).
This will provide gas supplies to 167,000 citizens in 56 rural settlements. As a result, 11.4 million citizens of the republic will have access to gas.