Hot water shutdowns due to buildings not being prepared for the heating season are becoming a systemic problem in Astana. Using the example of building No. 80 on Koshkarbayev Street, the official authorities explained the mechanism of such shutdowns and the distribution of responsibility between various services. As it turns out, the problem lies in the complex system of interaction between residents, management companies, and resource supply organisations.
Recall that residents of building No. 80 on Koshkarbayev Street were left without hot water from 17 July due to incomplete collection of funds for preparation for the heating season. The contractor carrying out the work is IE Azimut, which provided a commercial proposal amounting to over 1.2 million tenge. The money was collected unofficially — via transfers and cash, which raised questions about the legality of the collective water shut-off.
JSC 'Astana-Teplotransit' confirmed in an official response to our editorial office that the shutdown was carried out based on a work order from the district akimat. The company referred to the 'Rules for the Use of Thermal Energy', according to which the supply of thermal energy is stopped in the event of failure to comply with instructions from local executive bodies within the established deadlines and the absence of a technical readiness certificate for the heating season.
'The hot water supply system in an apartment building is a common building system, and it is technologically impossible to disconnect or connect individual apartments,' explains the resource supply organisation.
At the same time, JSC 'Astana-Teplotransit' emphasised that it does not participate in organising the collection of funds; this is the competence of the servicing organisation.
The district akimat, for its part, reported that general meetings of residents were held with the participation of representatives of the authorities and resource supply organisations even before the shutdown. According to their data, on 10 July, a preliminary notice of the shutdown was issued.
Regarding the unofficial collection of funds, the authorities provided clarification: apartment owners have the right to collect money by decision of a general meeting. Collection via LLP 'Astana-ERTs' takes from one to two months, requires a meeting protocol supported by more than 51% of residents, and is subject to bank commissions.
The akimat also noted the limitations of its powers. According to the law on local self-government, district authorities lack oversight and control functions regarding resource supply organisations. Disputes arising from housing relations are resolved in court.
Hot water in the building was restored on 25 July after the necessary work was carried out, however, according to residents, they were given a deadline until 5 August for the final resolution of all issues.
Meanwhile, a similar situation is developing at building No. 30/2 on Ile Street, where more than 100 families have been left without hot water. According to residents, after a scheduled shutdown on 25 July, hot water never returned to their apartments. The reason is the same — lack of a targeted collection for repairing the heating unit. The specific feature of this case is that the building belongs to the state housing stock, and the residents are not the owners of the apartments.
The akimat of the Almaty district has scheduled a repeat meeting with residents for 29 July with the participation of the relevant authorities. The restoration of hot water, according to the authorities, is only possible after meeting all technical requirements.
This creates a vicious circle: some residents are ready to pay, others are not, but the water is shut off for everyone at once. Technically, it cannot be done any other way — the system is common to the entire building. The law, meanwhile, states that all owners must maintain the common property, even if not everyone is willing to chip in for repairs. In the end, it is the conscientious residents who have already paid their share who suffer, forced to wait until the others settle up.