ALMATY – Kazakhstan is advancing construction of the Data Center Valley in the Pavlodar Region, a large-scale computing infrastructure project intended to support artificial intelligence development, attract international technology companies and create a new export-oriented segment of the digital economy, as Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov reviewed progress on Aug.
13. Click to see the map in full size. The map is designed by The Astana Times. The first facility, with a planned capacity of 50 megawatts, is now under construction. Excavation work for the energy center and AI factory buildings is 90% complete, while foundation work and construction of administrative facilities are underway.
Officials said the main buildings of the data center and power units are expected to be completed by the end of December 2026. Commissioning work is scheduled to finish in May 2027, with the facility expected to begin operations in June 2027. Kazakhstan has also acquired a 215-megawatt substation to supply the site, and is developing water and telecommunications infrastructure.
In the longer term, Data Center Valley is designed to expand in stages to a total capacity of up to 1 gigawatt. That would turn the project from a single data center into a large computing campus capable of hosting data centers, AI factories, GPU clusters and cloud platforms for international hyperscalers.
Why computing capacity is becoming strategic As artificial intelligence requires large amounts of computing power, data centers are becoming an essential part of the infrastructure supporting the digital economy. For Kazakhstan, the potential opportunity is to move beyond being primarily a consumer of foreign digital services and develop the infrastructure needed to host computing capacity within the country.
Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov reviews progress on the Data Center Valley project during a government meeting on Aug. 13. Photo credit: Prime Minister’s press service. “Data Center Valley is creating a new export potential for Kazakhstan. By locating computing capacity within the country, we are creating conditions for developing domestic AI solutions, attracting global companies and entering the international market for digital services,” Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development Zhaslan Madiyev said.
According to Kazakhtelecom Board Chairman Bagdat Mussin, the project’s expansion will depend on confirmed client demand. “Our first priority is to complete construction of the first facility in June 2027. At the same time, we are creating the engineering foundation that will allow us to gradually increase the campus capacity in line with confirmed customer demand,” he said.
The project will therefore need to solve two parallel challenges: building enough infrastructure to attract major technology companies while avoiding capacity that significantly exceeds demand. From infrastructure to a digital ecosystem