Kazakhstan Business & Economy - The Times Of Central Asia

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Oil Exports Across Caspian Sea Increase

KazTransOil JSC, a subsidiary of Kazakhstan’s national oil and gas company KazMunayGas, said on January 12th that it has exported 3.376 million tons of oil from the Caspian port of Aktau in 2023, a 1.108-million-ton increase compared to 2022. The increase is due to the volume of crude oil shipped in the direction of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline, from 250,000 tons to 1.392 million tons, 5.5-fold more compared to 2022. Of that amount, 1.057 million tons of oil was shipped from the Tengiz oil field in this direction. In addition, in 2023, 1.984 million tons of oil was shipped from Aktau to Makhachkala in Russia. In 2022, President Tokayev ordered that the volume of oil transported along the Trans-Caspian corridor be increased. In accordance with his instruction, KazMunayGas and the state oil company of Azerbaijan, SOCAR entered into an agreement providing for the transportation of up to 1.5 million tons of oil per year from the Tengiz field in the direction of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline.

U.S. Interested in Kazakhstan’s Critical Minerals

The Minister of Industry and Construction of Kazakhstan, Kanat Sharlapaev met with U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Resources, Geoffrey Ross Pyatt to deepen the dialogue between the two countries on the development of sustainable mineral value chains, the Kazakh Ministry of Industry and Construction said on January 11th. The meeting took place on the fringes of The Future Minerals Forum in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The two officials discussed key aspects of cooperation in the field of mineral resources, energy, and the prospects for the two nations long-term partnership, taking into account more than thirty years of strong strategic cooperation. The meeting highlighted Kazakhstan's potential to supply more than sixteen critical minerals identified by a U.S. Geological Survey. Among them are bismuth, gallium, vanadium, tungsten, tin, tantalum, niobium, magnesium, lithium, indium, graphite, and cobalt. The parties noted the interest of large American companies, such as Rio Tinto, Cove Capital, and Relativity Space in Kazakhstan’s mining industry. Both sides confirmed their intention to continue their joint efforts to develop sustainable approaches to minerals, stating that this line of work contributes to a sustainable energy transition and creates the conditions for long-term economic sustainability in Kazakhstan and the United States.

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Kazakhstan and Japan to Cooperate in Low-Carbon Development

On January 9th the Minister of Energy of Kazakhstan, Almasadam Satkaliev, and the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan, Ken Saito, signed a memorandum of cooperation in the field of low-carbon development and interaction in energy transition, the Ministry of Energy of Kazakhstan has stated. The document is aimed at strengthening cooperation in the use of energy resources and technologies, including energy conservation and renewable energy sources consistent with the goals of the Paris Agreement. The Minister of Energy of Kazakhstan said that Kazakhstan and Japan are already successfully cooperating in the fields of uranium, oil and gas production, and are also introducing Japanese technologies at energy facilities. The parties reached an agreement to prepare a list of potential projects for joint implementation in the energy sector, including in the field of electric power and renewable energy sources. One such project is for wind power using a 500 MW battery energy storage system in Kazakhstan. The parties also agreed to strengthen their interaction in priority areas in the energy sector, including the implementation of sustainable development goals.

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Kazakhstan Participates in Summit in India

The Deputy Minister of Trade and Integration of Kazakhstan, Kairat Torebayev spoke at the country session of the 10th Global Summit, “Vibrant Gujarat”, which is taking place from January 10th to the 12th. The Gujarat Summit has been held in Gandhinagar since 2003 on the initiative of Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi. Within the platform, participating countries discuss issues of socioeconomic development and promising projects for foreign investment. In February, Kazakhstan and India will celebrate their 32nd anniversary of cooperation since the establishment of diplomatic relations. Trade relations between Kazakhstan and India continue to develop: in 2022 mutual trade turnover reached $2.5 billion, though from January-October 2023, this figure decreased to $811.2 million. “Kazakhstan is the main trading partner of India among the Central Asian nations and is ready to further increase trade turnover in the amount of $148.1 million,” Torebayev stated. “Having significant natural resources in the energy sector, our country is a reliable partner for India in ensuring the supply of oil, gas, and other energy resources. In turn, the capacious Indian market is interesting to Kazakhstan's exporters of goods and services.” Torebayev went on to say that enterprises can increase the supply of products from the metallurgical, chemical, food, construction, and machine-building industries. The Deputy Minister also spoke about deepening cooperation between the two countries, as well as increasing mutual investments and implementing joint projects in areas with great potential, such as digitization, innovation, healthcare, education, and tourism. Today, approximately 400 legal entities backed by Indian capital are registered in Kazakhstan. The inflow of foreign direct investment from India to Kazakhstan over the past 25 years totals $414 million.

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Kazakhstan to Host Sixth Digital Almaty Forum

The forum, Digital Almaty 2024, “Industry X: the Digital Evolution of the Future,” will be held in Almaty from February 1st to 3rd, bringing together officials from the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), leading experts and entrepreneurs to exchange ideas aimed at creating a new era of digital industry. The Forum will also include Industry 4.0 Startup Battle - a large-scale challenge for the title of best industrial startup - and an exhibition of Kazakhstan's largest subsoil users, technology parks, and technology companies that will share their experience about projects in the IT ecosystem. Panel discussions will feature more than 200 speakers, including international experts, industry leaders, and leading innovators in IT and business. “The Digital Almaty International Forum annually brings together the world’s leading experts from fifteen countries,” Bagdat Mussin, the Minister of Digital Development, Innovations and Aerospace Industry of Kazakhstan said. “In the new year, new digital solutions are needed that will help improve business processes. This platform provides ample opportunities for the presentation and discussion of key trends, projects, and technologies in this industry.” The organizers of Digital Almaty are the Ministry of Digital Development, Innovation and Aerospace Industry, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Almaty municipality, and the Autonomous Cluster Fund “Park of Innovative Technologies” (Tech Garden).

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Tourism Rapidly Expanding in Kazakhstan

According to the Bureau of National Statistics, in the first nine months of last year, the number of foreign tourists visiting Kazakhstan increased by 37%, reaching 834,900 people. The geography of places visited is also expanding every year. "Kazakhstan, in addition to its closest neighbors, has also been visited by travelers from far-flung countries," the Deputy Minister of Tourism and Sports of Kazakhstan, Yerzhan Yerkimbayev stated. According to the Ministry of Tourism, for the period from January to September 2023, the largest number of tourists to visit Kazakhstan, 356,850, came from the Russian Federation. In second place were Chinese tourists, who numbered 75,131 people. The third place was taken by travelers from Turkey - 41,134 people, in fourth came India (34,757), and in fifth came and the U.S.A. (28,160), which entered the top five for the first time.