Kazakhstan to train specialists for nuclear power plants itself

Future Nuclear Power Plant

Kazakhstan will commence the training of energy experts who will work at the future nuclear power plant

Astana

Kazakhstan will commence the training of specialists (energy experts) who will work at the future nuclear power plant (NPP). The relevant protocol has been approved by several institutions and universities in the country, Eurasia Today reports.

The protocol on joint personnel training for the NPP has been endorsed by the Institute of Nuclear Physics, Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, Almaty University of Energy and Communications named after G. Daukeev, the International Kazakh-Turkish University named after H.A. Yassawi, and the Kazakh National Research Technical University named after K.I. Satpayev.

A three-stage educational program will be implemented to prepare specialists in the required fields for the NPP, such as “Nuclear Physics and Technologies,” “Nuclear Energy,” “Nuclear Reactors and Materials,” and “Nuclear Engineering.”

According to the protocol, future specialists will undergo practical training in these fields at the Institute of Nuclear Physics, where they will have the opportunity for hands-on exercises using the research reactor VVER-K. Theoretical training on general educational disciplines will take place at universities such as AUEN, KazNU, MKTU, and Satbayev University.

Darhan Akhmed-Zaki, the Vice Minister of Science and Higher Education, highlighted that the Institute of Nuclear Physics has successful collaboration in personnel training not only with the country’s universities but also with leading foreign institutes.

“Thanks to a joint program with the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, 200 bachelor’s and master’s students have been trained within the dual-degree program of Kazakhstan and Russia. The Institute also collaborates with major international organizations and universities such as CERN, MIT, and participates in global experiments NA62, DUNE, HIKE. It has extensive international experience in personnel training. Therefore, joint personnel training for the NPP, I believe, will be an important step in the development of the country’s nuclear industry,” emphasized Darhan Akhmed-Zaki.

Kazakhstan plans to build its first NPP in the village of Ulken Zhambyl in the Almaty region, situated on the shores of Lake Balkhash.

Local residents have supported the NPP construction project in the settlement. Russia is ready to assist with this, as stated by Russian President Vladimir Putin in November 2023.

Published under International Cooperation with "Sindh Courier"