Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov has held a meeting on the current status of implementation of the project “Data Center Valley”, as part of directives set by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev at the V meeting of the Ulttyq Qurultay, Qazinform News Agency reports. Deputy Prime Minister – Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development Zhaslan Madiyev, Minister of Energy Yerlan Akkenzhenov, Governor of Pavlodar region Assain Baikhanov, and Chairman of the Management Board of JSC Kazakhtelecom Bagdat Mussin made reports on the progress of the project implementation.
In the city of Ekibastuz in Pavlodar region, land plots have been designated, basic agreements have been concluded, and a 215 MW substation has been purchased, forming the foundation of the energy infrastructure for the ‘Data Center Valley’ project. At a meeting held to further create favorable conditions for investors, a preferential tariff model for energy supply was approved, along with necessary investment and tax incentives.
Bagdat Muыsin reported that work is underway to attract international technology and investment companies. Negotiations have been conducted with more than 20 hyperscale companies from the USA, China, and India, operating in cloud computing, big data processing, and AI.
As a result of these negotiations, preliminary demand has been formed for capacities exceeding 100 MW, while the total potential of the ‘Data Center Valley’ amounts to up to 1 GW, designed to host major anchor clients. Overall, the implementation of the ‘Data Center Valley’ project is aimed at establishing the largest regional digital hub in Kazakhstan and attracting leading global technology companies.
The Prime Minister set a task to accelerate the adoption of necessary regulatory decisions and ensure the completion of all stages of the project within the established timeframe.