Rising electricity costs, higher labor expenses, and aging networks are behind the increase in water supply and sewerage tariffs in Almaty, according to Zhandos Takibayev, deputy general director of Almaty Su, as reported by infohub.kz.
Starting October 1, 2026, Almaty residents will pay 178.06 tenge per cubic meter for cold water and 119.46 tenge for sewerage.
Takibayev said water supply and sewerage are energy-intensive processes, so changes in electricity prices drive up the cost of the service. Spending on reagents, materials, spare parts, equipment, and other resources needed to operate facilities has also increased.
“A second important factor is adjusting employee salaries. Labor costs are part of the production cost of services, so payroll adjustments are factored into the tariff,” he noted.
Another reason for the tariff increase is the significant growth in the volume of utility infrastructure in operation. Over the past two years, facilities worth a total of 73.2 billion tenge were commissioned: 32 sewerage pumping stations, 6 pumping stations, 9 clean water reservoirs, 18 wells, 385 km of water supply networks, and 374 km of sewerage networks.
“Every commissioned facility requires ongoing spending on electricity, maintenance, repairs, materials, personnel, and emergency response,” the deputy director of Almaty Su added.
The fourth factor is investment obligations and the need to upgrade infrastructure. Networks and equipment wear out physically, while the load on the water supply and sewerage system grows along with Almaty’s development. Therefore, it is necessary not only to maintain existing infrastructure but also to carry out timely reconstruction and modernization, increase network capacity, and create opportunities for connecting new facilities.
“Today, the volume of infrastructure that must be maintained has changed, operating costs have risen, the load on the system has increased, and additional investment is needed,” Takibayev emphasized.
Almaty Su promised that all funds raised through the tariff increase will go toward repairing networks and upgrading equipment.
Earlier, Kursiv reported that on September 12, 2026, Alatau Zharyk Kompaniyasy raised the maximum price for retail electricity sales to 45.59 tenge per 1 kWh.