How Kazakhstan names its first nuclear power plant?

Kazakhstan has completed a nationwide contest to choose a name for the country’s first nuclear power plant, with “Balkhash Nuclear Power Plant” emerging as the winner after receiving the highest number of public submissions.

The chosen name aligns with international practice, where nuclear power plants are typically named according to geographic location, Caliber.Az reports, citing the Kazakh Atomic Energy Agency.

A total of 27,157 Kazakh citizens aged over 16 took part in the contest, each allowed to propose one name.

Out of all submissions, 10,460 unique variants were identified, with different spelling forms taken into account.

According to the agency, at the commission meeting, the 100 most popular proposals were reviewed.

The name ‘Balkhash’ was submitted by 882 citizens and ranked first in the final popularity rating, becoming the contest winner.

In October 2024, Kazakhstan held a referendum in which approximately 71% of voters supported building the country’s first modern nuclear power facility.

In June 2025, the Russian state corporation Rosatom was selected as the lead participant in an international consortium to construct the plant, with the version of their VVER-1200 “Generation 3+” technology chosen as optimal by the Kazakh Atomic Energy Agency.

A large investment is expected: the total cost of the project is estimated at around US$14–15 billion.

The plant is projected to diversify Kazakhstan’s energy mix, reduce reliance on coal power, and take advantage of its large uranium-production base, positioning nuclear energy as a low-carbon alternative.

Preliminary work began in the village of Ülken, Zhambyl District, Almaty Region (near Lake Balkhash), including engineering surveys and design documentation. 

By Jeyhun Aghazada