Incidence of District Heating and Natural Gas Networks on Energy Poverty Across Kazakhstan

Lack of access to modern fuels, high fuel prices, poor building insulation, and income poverty are one of the aspects leading to the energy poverty problem. In EU countries, energy poor persons are defined as “individuals not able to adequately heat their homes at affordable cost”. In developing countries lack of access to clean and commercial fuels and a high dependence on traditional biomass are the commonly accepted indicators of energy poverty. As in case of Kazakhstan, both definitions may be applicable. Kazakhstan may be particularly highly affected by this phenomenon due to the high heating demand and severe continential climate, as well as due to the high use of coal and biomass in some of its regions. This paper investigates the linkages between energy affordability and lack of access to modern energy sources (district heating and gas) across the regions of Kazakhstan.