Kazakh energy official welcomes deeper cooperation with China

Kazakhstan stands ready to cooperate with China to promote high-quality development in the energy sector and to explore the potential of using artificial intelligence (AI) in this field, a senior Kazakh official told China Global Television Network (CGTN).

China and Kazakhstan signed a series of major agreements on the sidelines of the ongoing second China-Central Asia Summit in Astana to advance cooperation in many sectors, including energy.

Under the "China-Central Asia: Energy" forum framework, the Kazakh Energy Ministry inked deals with Chinese enterprises for projects covering the localization of Chinese energy technologies, training of professional talents and the establishment of joint ventures within Kazakhstan.

In an interview with CGTN, Kazakhstan's Vice Minister of Energy Ilyas Bakytzhan highlighted China's leading, international role in the production of renewable energy, saying that his country is interested in building a strategic partnership with Chinese companies.

"Chinese energy companies are now major investors in Kazakhstan's energy system. We aim to deepen our relationship, create joint function centers to enable high-quality planning of the energy system's development, establish joint manufacturing companies to localize the production of certain components of renewable energy equipment, and make joint investments in energy projects within Kazakhstan," said Bakytzhan.

The minister said he hoped to explore innovative uses of AI to achieve more efficient power supply and develop smarter sustainable energy solutions.

"AI models make it possible to plan the generation of electricity from renewable sources with high precision. AI models also allow for high-quality planning of electricity consumption by the industrial sector and households. AI models make it possible to create a very high-quality, large-scale database to support decision-making by industry specialists. As of today, the full potential of AI in the industry has not yet been fully realized. We often notice new and meaningful use cases," he said.

The second China-Central Asia Summit is being held from June 16 to 18 in the Kazakh capital.

The central parity rate of the Chinese currency renminbi, or the yuan, strengthened 20 pips to 7.0108 against the U.S. dollar Monday, according to the China Foreign Exchange Trade System.

In China's spot foreign exchange market, the yuan is allowed to rise or fall by 2 percent from the central parity rate each trading day.

The central parity rate of the yuan against the U.S. dollar is based on a weighted average of prices offered by market makers before the opening of the interbank market each business day.