Expo 2017 Energy Exhibition launched in Astana, Kazakhstan

Astana held the grand opening of the Energy Exhibition EXPO 2017 on June 10, 2017. The opening ceremony was attended by the presidents of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization member countries (the Big Asian 8). The colorful opening of the exhibition marked the end of the hard work that Kazakhstan has been carrying out for almost 5 years. In 2012, Astana the capital of Kazakhstan won the competition to host the international energy exhibition EXPO over its main competitor, Liege of Belgium. Then Kazakhstan started several ambitious programs to build infrastructure for the exhibition. On the left bank of Astana, in the new part of the city, a huge complex was built to host Expo 2017. In the center of the complex there is a huge glass sphere accommodating the exposition of Kazakhstan on seven levels. Each level tells a story about existing technologies for energy generation from various sources: space, sun, wind, bioenergy, etc. Around the sphere there is a belt of buildings where expositions of the exhibitor countries are presented. Each country in its own way made the design and contents of the exposition. They describe the future research, generation and use of energy resources in the industry and everyday life. In addition, almost every country has shown programs and media about its life, attractions and opportunities for tourism. For example, the tourism exposition of Uzbekistan is one step ahead of its rivals from neighboring countries. A whole floor has been allocated to picture the tourist opportunities of this country, and representatives of tourist agencies, airlines and companies tell visitors about tourism in Uzbekistan and Central Asia. Exhibition Expo 2017 will last till September 10, 2017 (three months) and during this time it is expected that from two to five million people will come to see it. It will give a powerful momentum to the development of Astana as the largest metropolis and capital of Kazakhstan, improvement of infrastructure and tourism opportunities of the city.