As part of the state visit of President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to the Republic of Korea, a delegation of the Ministry of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan, led by Deputy Prime Minister – Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development Zhaslan Madiyev, held a series of meetings and signed cooperation agreements in the space sector.

Among them was the third meeting of the Working Group on Cooperation in Space Activities between the Aerospace Committee under the Ministry of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Korea Aerospace Administration (KASA). The meeting addressed the current state and prospects of bilateral cooperation, as well as potential areas for further cooperation in the space sector.

A strategic cooperation agreement in the space industry was signed by the Aerospace Committee under the Ministry of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan, JSC “NC “Kazakhstan Gharysh Sapary” and CONTEC Co., Ltd.

The agreement provides for strategic cooperation in satellite manufacturing, development of ground infrastructure, processing and commercialization of Earth observation data, as well as expanding the parties’ presence in the markets of Kazakhstan, the Republic of Korea, Central Asian countries and other states.

An investment agreement on technological and investment cooperation with Kazakhstan’s Ghalam LLP was signed between JSC “NC “Kazakhstan Gharysh Sapary”, Ghalam LLP, CONTEC Co., Ltd. and APSI. The document is aimed at strengthening the company’s potential and developing new technological competencies.

A practical continuation of the cooperation was an agreement between JSC “NC “Kazakhstan Gharysh Sapary” and Nara Space Technology Inc. on the supply of satellite data for monitoring methane emissions in Kazakhstan.

The agreement provides for the provision of data from the GYEONGGISat-2A and GYEONGGISat-2B satellites, as well as the NarSha satellite constellation designed to monitor methane emission sources. The resulting information may be used by government authorities and representatives of Kazakhstan’s industrial sector.

One of the key areas for applying satellite data will be the monitoring of methane emissions from oil and gas industry facilities, including oil refineries and natural gas infrastructure. The data may also be used to generate analytical information within MRV (Measurement, Reporting and Verification) systems.

Background:

CONTEC Space Group is one of Korea’s leading private space companies. Its founder worked at the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) for 16 years. The group comprises CONTEC, Asia Pacific Satellite Corporation and Texas Space Communication. The company supplies onboard computers for South Korean government satellites and operates 17 ground stations worldwide, including in Chile, Alaska, Texas, South Africa and Australia. It also maintains partnerships with Kongsberg Group, Safran and other global industry players.

Nara Space Technology Inc. is a South Korean space company that develops and operates satellites and transforms data collected through satellite networks into actionable intelligence. It builds multispectral Earth observation satellites, hyperspectral methane-monitoring satellites and customized satellites for customer missions including space exploration and in-orbit technology demonstration. The company also provides data intelligence services that support decision-making across various industries. The GYEONGGISat-2A and GYEONGGISat-2B satellites were developed by the company in partnership with Gyeonggi Province.