Kazakhstan To Lure More Countries To Develop Renewable Energy Sector

From Norsyafawati binti Ab Wahab ASTANA (Kazakhstan), Feb 24 (Bernama) -- Kazakhstan is committed to help the global community reduce their dependence on the use of non-renewable energy including oil and gas, for future benefit. Kazakhstan Deputy Foreign Minister Rapil Zhoshybayev said this suited the current situation where the crude oil market was experiencing significant drop in prices which affected the earnings of "black gold" producers. "We saw the downtrend of oil and gas, and in order not be too dependent on these kind of energies, many countries are now switching to alternative energies," he told Malaysian media in conjunction with the Second International Participants Meeting for EXPO-2017 here Wednesday. Themed, "Future Energy" the three-month expo beginning June 10 aimed to attract more than 100 countries and 10 international organisations. Over the expo period, participants are expected to demonstrate their achievements and prospects for the utilization of low and save renewable energy sources for the environment while others can emulate them. Zhoshybayev said although Kazakhstan was the second largest oil producer among the former Soviet countries after Russia, it was determined to provide a good platform for other countries to showcase their technologies and innovations in the renewable energy sector. He said many countries have already introduced such technologies including Belgium which wanted to attain 100 per cent renewable energy by 2050, as well as, small island nations which were already developing solar and wind energy to reduce their dependence on oil, coal and gas. "These are proof that the international community has interest in developing their renewable energy technology and we hope many of them will come to the expo next year," said Zhoshybayev who is also Commissioner of the International Specialised Exhibition EXPO 2017. He hoped participants would share their experience and knowledge in using nuclear fuel as a safe energy. "This will be in line with initiatives taken by the President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev for the dissolution of the use of nuclear energy for weapons and denounce any nuclear weapon test. "All these initiatives have contributed to a peaceful study on nuclear fuel," he added. --BERNAMA