Kazakhstan restores power after Toktogul hydro outage cuts 600 MW
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Kazakhstan restored its power grid within 2.5 hours after a cascade failure at Kyrgyzstan's Toktogul hydro plant cut 600 MW and blacked out Almaty and southern regions on August 25. Energy Minister Yerlan Akkenzhenov said relay protection worked correctly and ruled out any link to Kanye West's concert sphere. A state commission is investigating why the outage spread to Kazakhstan.
Key Facts
- The blackout began when hydro generators No. 1 and No. 2 at Kyrgyzstan's Toktogul HPP, with combined capacity of 625 MW, went offline.
- KEGOC restored Kazakhstan's power system in 2.5 hours, compared with several days for a similar outage in Istanbul and nine hours in Tbilisi.
- KEGOC is building a new line on the Shu–Zhambyl–Shymkent route to add about 500 MW of capacity to the southern zone, with commissioning planned for mid-2027.
- KEGOC head Nabi Aitzhanov confirmed top management received 587 million tenge in total payments, of which about 83 million tenge were bonuses.
- KEGOC's net profit rose from 43 billion tenge in 2023 and is planned to reach 77 billion tenge by the end of 2026.
Cascade Failure
The outage started with the shutdown of hydro generators No. 1 and No. 2 at the Toktogul HPP in Kyrgyzstan, with a combined capacity of 625 MW. Three substations and then three transmission lines disconnected, triggering a chain reaction that cut power to Almaty and southern Kazakhstan. KEGOC chairman Nabi Aitzhanov said the automation operated correctly, but there was no source for the 600 MW needed by consumers. Energy Minister Yerlan Akkenzhenov said KEGOC restored the national power system in 2.5 hours. He compared the recovery time with several days for a similar outage in Istanbul and nine hours in Tbilisi.
Investigation and Grid Reinforcement
A state commission is investigating why the outage affected Almaty and other southern territories of Kazakhstan and will present its findings later. KEGOC has been implementing a project since 2022 to strengthen the Shu–Zhambyl–Shymkent route. The new line is expected to increase the southern zone's transmission capacity by about 500 MW and is scheduled for commissioning in mid-2027. Akkenzhenov dismissed rumors that the giant sphere installed for Kanye West's concert at Almaty's Central Stadium caused the blackout. He said the Atyrau refinery consumes 90 MW, while the outage involved 600 MW, so the sphere's 5–10 MW could not affect the southern energy zone.
KEGOC Executive Payments
Aitzhanov confirmed that KEGOC top management received about 587 million tenge in total payments and bonuses after the blackout. Of that amount, about 83 million tenge were bonuses, while the rest included salaries and other remuneration for employees, top managers, and board members. He said bonus amounts are determined by Samruk-Kazyna corporate standards, internal company documents, and individual performance indicators. Aitzhanov noted that KEGOC's net profit grew from 43 billion tenge in 2023 and is planned to reach 77 billion tenge by the end of 2026. He concluded that the bonuses were justified.
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Kazakhstan restores power after Toktogul hydro outage cuts 600 MW
