City of Kara-Kol
Area
10.5 km²
Population
28,240
Founded
1962
About
Kara-Kul City is situated in a mountain gorge along the Bishkek—Osh highway, on the left bank of the Naryn River. The key defining feature of the city is its exceptional human resources and labor potential in the hydropower industry. Known as the "city of energy workers," Kara-Kul is home to highly skilled engineers and builders who maintain the Toktogul Hydroelectric Station cascade and build the country's main hydro-infrastructure. The city area features picturesque artificial lakes, Komsomolskoye and Pionerskoye.
History
The city's history is fundamentally intertwined with developing the energy capacity of the Naryn River. It was founded on June 16, 1962, as a settlement for hydro-builders constructing the Toktogul Dam and Reservoir, the largest hydropower project in Central Asia. Originally called Zhazy-Kechuu, it held the unofficial Soviet name Komsomolsk-on-Naryn. On January 7, 1977, by decree of the Supreme Soviet of the Kyrgyz SSR, the settlement officially achieved regional-level city status.