In the light of the new economic paradigm, in 2020 the Ministry of Ecology, Geology and Natural Resources of the Republic of Kazakhstan raised the problem of solid domestic waste recycling. As mentioned above, according to the concept for transition of the Republic of Kazakhstan to a “Green Economy”, in Kazakhstan this indicator should be brought to 40% by 2030. According to the Ministry, only 14% is recycled today. The industry is not attractive for investors due to low tariffs: today, tariffs for garbage collection in Kazakhstan are low and do not take into account the costs of solid domestic waste recycling.

In this regard, it was proposed to introduce the "Waste to Energy" mechanism, which provides for sale of electricity generated by waste incineration. At the same time, there are strict requirements for quality of emissions, similar to European directives. This mechanism will in a longer run reduce the volume of waste by up to 30% by 2025 and attract private investment.

To support the development of this industry, a mechanism for purchasing energy produced on a guaranteed basis will be used, similar to mechanism that is already used in Kazakhstan for electricity generated by renewable energy sources (RES). In other words, predefined volume of generation will be purchased from new production facilities at fixed rate during, for instance, 15 years.

According to the Ministry of Ecology, Geology and Natural Resources of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the first auctions for construction of waste incineration plants in Kazakhstan will be held in 2021. The Ministry plans to launch such plants in six cities — in Aktobe, Atyrau, Almaty, Nur-Sultan, Taraz and Shymkent. In addition, work with potential investors has already begun, in particular, issues are being worked out with Akimats on provision of land plots, infrastructure and guaranteed loading of waste from these industries for at least 15 years.

In this March, draft Order of the Minister of Ecology, Geology and Natural Resources of the Republic of Kazakhstan "On approval of the maximum auction prices for electric energy produced by waste-to-energy" was published on the Open NLA portal. According to the draft Order, it is proposed to approve the maximum auction price for electric energy produced by waste-to-energy in the amount of 191.9 tenge/kWh (excluding VAT). It should be mentioned that in 2021, there will be auctions for selection of renewable energy projects, where, for example, the maximum auction price for solar power will be 16.96 tenge/kWh, and for wind power — 21.53 tenge/kWh. Taking into account the decline in this indicator for renewable energy auctions in the near future, the cost of electricity from renewable energy sources will become the cheapest source of generation in our country, overtaking customary coal-fired generation. However, addressing the issue of solid waste recycling is an integral part of building a circular economy and is an equally important indicator of the Concept for transition of the Republic of Kazakhstan to a "green economy".