The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and Kazakhstan’s national gas operator, KazTransGas, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at exploring ways to promote energy efficiency in the gas sector.
The EBRD and KazTransGas will examine specific possibilities for modernisation and energy efficiency improvements in gas compressor stations and gas networks, systems responsible for the monitoring and control of fugitive greenhouse gas emissions and of supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems, EBRD said in a statement.
The EBRD and KazTransGas started cooperating in May this year, when the EBRD committed nearly Eur300 million to two landmark projects in Kazakhstan aimed at the modernisation of gas networks and the fuel switch from coal to gas for heat and power generation, with the upgrade of the Bozoi underground gas storage to help it reach full capacity, it explained.
The signing of the MoU comes shortly before the COP22 climate talks in Morocco.
“As a result of the historic COP21 talks in Paris last year, Kazakhstan has undertaken to reduce its CO2 emissions and increase the sustainable use of energy” EBRD said.
The EBRD invested close to $7.5 billion in Kazakhstan’s economy to date. Addressing global challenges such as climate change is one of the Bank’s priorities, it added.