By Eurasianet – Mar 16, 2026, 1:00 PM CDT
- Russian firms are losing major energy contracts in Central Asia because financing plans are falling apart.
- Kazakhstan has shifted key power projects from Russian companies to cheaper Chinese contractors.
- Uzbekistan is signaling doubts about Rosatom by exploring French involvement in its nuclear program.
An important revenue stream in Central Asia for Russia appears in danger of slowing to a trickle.
The international power sector has long been lucrative for Russia, via projects developed by Rosatom, the state-controlled atomic energy entity, and other Kremlin-connected companies. But the ability of Russia and its corporate proxies to finance deals appears to be encountering increasing difficulty. Accordingly, business is slipping.
Evidence of financing difficulties for Russian companies is mounting across Central Asia. For example, Kazakhstan has opted to engage a Chinese company, Harbin Electric International, to complete the next phase of construction at the Ekibastuz GRES-2 power station. Russian firms were originally tapped to do the job, but after a financing plan by the Kremlin fell through, Kazakh officials moved on. To add to Russia’s embarrassment, Harbin Electric has agreed to complete the project at less than two-thirds the cost of the original Russian estimate, saving the Kazakh government almost $500 million.
In 2025, financing woes resulted in a Russian state-controlled entity, Inter RAO, losing contracts to build three power plants in the Kazakh cities of Kokshetau, Semey, and Oskemen. All three contracts were subsequently given to Chinese firms, according to Kazakh officials.
In Uzbekistan, officials seem to be growing nervous about Rosatom’s capabilities to build nuclear reactors in the country. Uzbek authorities have engaged France’s nuclear company Framatome to explore the firm’s potential participation in nuclear plant construction. The discussions focused on “the introduction of modern automated technological process management systems (ASUTP) at nuclear power plants,” the Uzbek energy agency, Uzatom, said in a March 9 statement.
By Eurasianet
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