The National Energy Program for 2008-2010, with its integrated plan for fuel-energy complex development to 2025, remains the main long-term policy document for the energy sector. It aims to:
- Ensure reliable electricity and heat supply.
- Liberalise the electricity market and adopt the legislation necessary to define market rules.
- Improve the energy efficiency of production, transmission and distribution of electricity and heat through modernisation and new technologies.
- Increase hydro and coal-fired generation capacity to augment the national electricity supply and increase exports.
- Actively participate in regional electricity market development within the sphere of the EAEU.
The government prioritises energy security, efficiency and sustainable development in its policies. Improving energy security and efficiency is important due to fluctuations in hydropower production, reliance on hydrocarbon imports, and aged, inefficient infrastructure that incurs high losses.
In March 2020, the government approved a Medium-Term Tariff Policy (MTTP) for 2020-2022 to make electricity, heating and hot water tariffs more cost-reflective while providing affordable energy for the most vulnerable customers.
Kyrgyzstan’s energy saving potential is significant: it is estimated that rehabilitation and modernisation can save up to 25% of electricity and 15% of heat. Under the National Strategy for Sustainable Development for 2018-2040, energy efficiency technologies must be applied in all new construction, and the government plans to implement large-scale programmes for the energy‑efficient reconstruction of old residential and non-residential buildings, and to introduce energy efficiency passports for all buildings.
The government also prioritises regional electricity market development to improve energy security, intensify market competition and increase exports of Kyrgyz electricity.
The most significant project on regional integration is CASA‑1000, consisting of a 500‑kilovolt (kV) Datka-Khodjent-Sangtuda alternating current (AC) transmission line connecting Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, and a 500-kV direct current (DC) transmission line connecting Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan. The project was approved in 2012 by all member countries, and in 2019 a subcontractor was selected and construction started. The completion of the Kyrgyz component is planned for 2023.
The government also plans to reform the coal sector by privatising it and increasing competition; it will therefore phase out financial support to the sector to attract private investment. As coal is currently the most cost-effective and readily available fuel, the government plans to increase production in existing fields from 450 kilotonnes (kt) in 2010 to 3 Mt by 2025 (in 2018, coal production was 2.395 Mt). The main objectives of coal sector reform are to:
- Privatise the coal sector and create a competitive coal market.
- Improve working and safety conditions.
- Improve socio-economic and ecological conditions in coal mining regions.
In the oil and gas sector, policies are directed at improving the fiscal regime of minerals management and attracting investment to develop new oil and gas fields. Further, they aim to foster competition in domestic oil supply with fair conditions for all market participants. Gazprom Kyrgyzstan, in co-operation with Gazprom, is developing a gas distribution policy to 2030.
Kyrgyzstan ratified the Kyoto Protocol in February 2003, and a number of Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects have been identified but not yet registered. In October 2013, the government adopted the Priorities for Adaptation to Climate Change up to 2017 programme, aimed at developing adaptation measures in water, agriculture, health, environmental emergencies, forestry and biodiversity; the respective ministries have submitted sectoral adaptation programmes for government approval. Furthermore, Kyrgyzstan’s Third National Communication under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), prepared by the State Agency for Environment Protection and Forestry, was approved by the Kyrgyz government in October 2016. In November 2019 Kyrgyzstan ratified the Paris Agreement. The State Agency on Environmental Protection and Forestry has developed a first draft of “green economy” document – Concept for Long-term Development of the Kyrgyz Republic with Low Greenhouse Gas Emission until 2050.